PACIFIC FISHERMAN 



75 



Fish Coming 



The diminishing supply of land animals capable of 

 supplying human food, and the consequent increase in the 

 cost of same, in many instances reaching such an altitude 

 as to preclude their regular use by people of moderate or 

 poor circumstances, has caused the attention of the econo- 

 mist and scientist to be directed to fish as an excellent 

 substitute, one that is also cheaper, more nutritious and 

 wholesome than meat. 



As ordinarily employed the term fish includes, besides 

 the fish proper, many other water animals, as oysters, 

 clams, and other mollusks; lobsters, crawfish, crabs and 

 shrimps, and turtle and terrapin. 



But few people have any conception of the present vast 

 extent of our salt and fresh water fisheries, and yet, should 

 the demand warrant it, this output could be doubled and 

 trebled. Complete and accurate figures of the annual catch 

 of the commercial fishermen of the United States are not 

 available, but the best estimate, based upon accurate data 

 for certain sections, and estimates from the best sources 

 possible covering the other regions, is to the effect that 

 about 2,400,000,000 pounds of fishery products was taken 

 from our waters last year. This enormous catch had a 

 value to the fishermen of approximately $70,000,000. The 

 canning, salting, and otherwise preserving of a consider- 

 able part of this catch gave employment to an army of 

 additional employees and added from 30 to 50 per cent to 

 the original value of the catch. 



The population of the United States at the last census 

 was 91,972,266, and if this enormous catch were to be 

 equally divided each man, woman and child in the country 

 would have consumed approximately 26.1 pounds of fish in 

 1914. This is a very small percentage, being only about 

 one-half pound per week, and if it were to be trebled it 

 would mean a vast increase in the number of fishermen 

 employed and in the amount of business done by the 

 dealers in fish and the manufacturers of fishing gear, ves- 

 sels, boats, etc., thus giving employment to more than twice 

 the number now employed. 



Unfortunately, in the vast majority of homes nsh is 

 rarely ever seen except on one day in the week. The rea- 

 son for this, in these days of quick and sanitary transpor- 

 tation of food products, is largely due to lack of knowledge 

 of the cheapness of fish as compared with meat, the fact 

 that in nutritive qualities certain kinds of fish are superior 

 to meat and other food products, while in general whole- 

 someness it is the equal, if not superior of other food pro- 

 ducts. 



In order to bring home to our people the many advan- 

 tages of a more liberal fish diet the federal and several 

 city governments, and various private associations, com- 

 panies and individuals during 1914 did yeoman publicity 

 work. In this line the palm should unquestionably be ac- 

 corded to the U. S. Bureau of Fisheries for its economic 

 circular No. 11, entitled "Canned Salmon Cheaper than 

 Meats, and Why. Including Fifty Tested Recipes." A 

 very large edition of this 11-page circular was printed and 

 distributed throughout the world, and it has had a remark- 

 ably beneficial effect upon the sale of Canned Salmon, 

 especially abroad, where a government guarantee of this 

 character is appreciated at its true value. 



The following extract from this circular shows what 

 the bureau thinks of Canned Salmon as a food product: 



"The cheapest food is that which supplies nutriment at 

 the lowest cost. One pound of canned Red salmon of the 

 best quality will cost about 16 cents. The same quantity 

 of bone, muscle, blood, and^ brain building material and 

 body fuel in other foods would cost — 



Cents. 



Eggs, strictly fresh Cat 34 cents per dozen) 36 



Steak, sirloin (at 27% cents per pound) 33 



Mutton, leg (at 19 cents per pound) 32 



Chicken, average (at 25 cents per pound) 21 'j 



Ham. smoked (at 18% cents per pound) 13 14 



Pink salmon, canned (at 9 cents pel- can) ] 2 u 



"Ham is apparently cheaper than the other meats be- 

 cause it contains more fat or fuel, the cheapest of nutri- 

 tive ingredients, which can be supplied more cheaply by 

 the vegetable food which should accompany the meats or 

 fish." 



Into Its Own 



The Bureau of Fisheries has also issued a circular on 

 the use of mussels as food, which has led to a consider- 

 able increase in the demand for this hitherto neglected 

 product. 



The Bureau of Chemistry of the IT. S. Department of 

 Agriculture issued a bulletin prepared by M. E. Penning- 

 ton, chief food research laboratory of the bureau, and en- 

 titled, "Supplementing Our Meat Supply with Fish." which 

 has had a wide and beneficial effect throughout the coun- 

 try. This pamphlet also contains a short history of the 

 efforts European governments are making to extend the 

 markets for their fishery products. 



Last summer John P. Mitchell, mayor of New York, ap 

 pointed a committee on food supply, and this committee 

 in October issued a booklet entitled, "Information About 

 Fish and How to Use Them." This booklet gives direc- 

 tions on how to tell when fish is fresh, cleaning fish, when 

 fish is in season, and how to cook fish, and should have a 

 much wider circulation than New York City alone, as it 

 is so simply and clearly written as to be easily under- 

 stood by any consumer who is able to read English. 



The New York health department also issued a bulletin 

 relative to the food value of fish, in which the following 

 table showing the quantity of protein in various foods and 

 the cost per pound of same occurs: 



FISH. 



Cost per 



Per cent pound, 



protein. cents. 



Haddock 13 7 



Herring 19 8 



Bluefisb 19 10 



Codfish 18 12 



Eels 18 15 



BEEF. 



Chuck 19 24 



Rump 19 24 



Round 21 20 



Sirloin Steak 19 30 



Ribs 18 26 



"Since you eat meat for the protein it contains, why not 

 eat it in the form of fish, and save money?" 



The directors of the port of Boston, shortly after the 

 cattle quarantine was established last fall in a dozen states, 

 on account of the outbreak of the foot and mouth disease, 

 and thus caused an excessive shortage of beef products, 

 with a consequent increase in the already high price, issued 

 a bulletin on the subject in which they stated "there is only- 

 one way to meet the problem of an increased cost and 

 shortage of meat — to supplement our meat supply by turn- 

 ing to the sea for fish. There is a limit to the supply of 

 cattle, but when we come to the fish of the seas we find 

 them feeding and breeding unaided, and practically in un- 

 limited numbers." 



The bulletin considers at some length the food value of 

 fish as compared with meat, and also shows how important 

 a factor the fishing industry is in the business of the port 

 of Boston. 



The Department of Naval Service, Dominion of Canada, 

 which has charge of the fishing activities of the dominion, 

 has issued a handsome and valuable little booklet entitled, 

 "Fish and How to Cook It." This shows the nutritive quali- 

 ties of fish as food, its cheapness as compared with other 

 food products, and also gives a large number of recipes. 



As to the digestibility of fish this booklet has the follow- 

 ing which has been condensed from an article written by 

 Sir James Crichton-Browne, M. D., D. Sc, on the "Value of 

 Fish as Food": 



"The same authority states that another very important 

 reason why fish should be generally used is easy digesti- 

 bility. Even feeble stomachs, that cannot readily deal with 

 butcher's meat, find little difficulty in assimilating fish. 

 The rapidity with which any kind of meat dissolves in the 

 stomach depends largely on the fineness of its fibres. Thus 

 beef is less digestible than mutton, because the fibres are 

 longer and harder, and again mutton is less digestible than 



