72 The Commercial Prod^lcts of the Sea. 



rail while fishing. He very seldom pays out more than 

 four or five fathoms of line, for the mackerel, attracted by 

 the chopped fish thrown overboard, thousands of pieces of 

 which float in mid-water, leaves the depths of the sea, and 

 comes swimming towards the surface to feast with avidity 

 on this excellent bait, prepared for him with so much care ; 

 and while he is gorging himself with pieces of poggie and 

 mackerel, he seizes the bait on the fisherman's hook, and 

 soon, in spite of his violent efforts to break the iron that is 

 tearing his mouth, and to free himself, he is pulled out of 

 the water and thrown upon the deck, where he dies before 

 long. 



The fish are classed by the inspectors into four grades, 

 the third and fourth quality being worth only half the value 

 of No. i. They are packed for shipment in barrels, half 

 quarter, and eighth barrels. Nos. I and 2 are intended for 

 the home markets of the United States and Canada, the 

 lowest quality being principally consumed in the West 

 Indies. 



In curing them, the common custom is to dip them in 

 fine salt before salting in the barrels. When this is neg- 

 lected, the fish adhere together, and become red and 

 tainted. The proper mode of packing is with the flesh 

 side down ; this prevents the fish from tainting, and allows 

 all impurities in the salt to settle away from the flesh of 

 the fish. Mackerel are also cured in hermetically sealed 

 tins, but not to a very large extent. In 1873 the quantity 

 so packed was 21,000 cans in New Brunswick, and 10,842 

 cans in Nova Scotia. 



