70 THE CANNING OF FOODS, 



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2 to 4J feet in depth. The seine is drawn in such a manner as to 

 cause the shrimp to go into the purse in their attempt to escape. 



As soon as the catch is made safe the boat is brought alongside 

 and the shrimp dipped out with scoop nets. They are stowed 

 promptly in the hold of the vessel and well iced if the weather is 

 warm or the trip is to continue for more than a day. The seines 

 used in shrimp fishing are from 150 to 225 fathoms in length (900 

 to 1,350 feet) and from 140 to 150 meshes wide. (A mesh is three- 

 quarters of an inch, giving a width of 105 to 112 inches.) The new 

 apparatus for handling the seine consists of a stake with special 

 pulleys near the bottom so that the seine may be drawn from below 

 without a tendency to raise it off the ground. 



The boat equipment for catching shrimp is essentially the same as 

 for handling oysters, so that they are used interchangeably. The 

 seine takes the place of the dredges and windlass, and the crew is 

 usually made up of five or six men. The boats will carry about 140 

 barrels of iced shrimp. 



Shrimps are weighed instead of measured, a barrel being 200 

 pounds. The pay for catching is $3.50 per barrel in the fall and $4 

 in the spring. The fall run is the more certain catch and requires 

 less ice, which makes the difference in the schedule of prices. 



When the shrimp are brought on the dock they are stored in ice 

 until ready to use. The ice makes the peeling easier and is necessary 

 to prevent spoilage. The removal of the head and shell is known as 

 " peeling " the shrimp, and this is done for all canned shrimp. The 

 head and thorax break from the heavy tail with ease and a slight 

 squeeze will separate the fleshy portion from the shell. This work 

 is done rapidly ; the pay for peeling is about 1 cent per pound. The 

 peeled shrimp are thoroughly washed in two or more changes of 

 water and are then ready for blanching. The blanching consists in 

 boiling the shrimp in salt water ; which is done by suspending them 

 in a wire basket in the boiling brine. The time of the blanch is 

 usually about four minutes for the wet pack and five minutes for the 

 dry pack. The salt in the brine is in the proportion of about 1 

 pound per gallon of water. Up to the time the shrimp go into the 

 blanch they are white or slightly gray in color; the boiling in the 

 brine causes them to become bright pink or red. 



The shrimp are turned out upon trays having wire netting. As 

 soon as cool they are filled into cans by hand, each can being weighed. 

 The shrimp are all packed in either Xo. 1 or No. 1^ cans, the former 

 having 4J ounces and the latter 9 ounces. There is no attempt at 

 grading. 



Shrimp are put up in what are known as dry and wet packs. In 

 the dry pack no liquor is added, while in the wet pack brine is used. 

 The process for dry shrimp is 1 hour at 240 F. or 4 hours at 212 F. 



