174 BULLETIN OF THE BUREAU 01 FISHERIES. 



this kelp whirl] had been use.] for dog-fish oil. I split one open and found that the oil had hard- 

 ened thi' inside of the kelp tuhe to the consistency of leather. This specimen 1 washed with snap and 

 water, then wiped it to remove the moisture, and then rubbed and manipulated it after the manner 



used by natives in dressing deer skins, and when perfectly dry by this process of continual rubbing, it 

 was soft and flexible, presenting an appearance of wash leather, but if allowed to dry without manip- 

 ulation it would be hard and brittle. A party of coast Indians were camped on the beach at Tort 

 Townsend, and. at my request, they showed me their method of preparing kelp for holding oil. The 

 great stems of the Nereocystis are covered with a thin coating of silex, which is carefully pealed off as 

 miic might peel the skin from an apple; only the hollow or upper part of the stem is used. When the 

 skin is removed the tube is placed above the fire and smoke in the. lodge, and. as it dries, the salt it 

 contains exudes on the surface; this is carefully removed by rubbing, which also serves to soften the 

 kelp and render it pliable. It is then again placed over the fire, and the process continued until the 

 salt is removed; then the tube is blown up like a bladder and allowed to dry until it will retain its 

 shape, and it is then filled with dog-fish oil and is ready for market. 



The rude and simple experiments I made with this giant kelp convinced me that it is capable of 

 being converted into articles of commercial value, but as 1 had not the means of conducting experi- 

 ments, or of procuring the machinery requisite to the manufacture of the kelp products on a scale of 

 commercial importance, I have allowed the matter to rest until some one of enterprise and capital may 

 be found ready to continue these investigations. 



****** * 



During a resilience of many years in the yicinitj of Cape Flattery, at the entrance of Fuca Strait. 

 1 have had ample time ami opportunity to observe the great masses of the giant kelp and other marine 

 plants which are torn up by the roots every fall by the storms and piled by the waves along the beach 

 at Xeah Bay. I have frequently noticed, when a mass of this kelp has been thrown into a pool of 

 fresh water, that in a lew days it is covered with this slippery substance, which Stanford (1884) has 

 named algin, and I think that the .V/Trm-i/xtis is rich with this valuable ingredient. The supply of the 

 raw material is practically unlimited, and if attention shall be directed to the valuable uses to which 

 this plant and other alga' may be put, I feel confident that a new and important industry will be 

 developed. 



FOOD PREPARATIONS FROM THE KELPS. 



Numerous species of Laminaria exist on the northern parts of both coasts of 

 the United States. The only use to which the plants are now put is for fertilizer. 

 There is no question but that some of the Japanese "kombu" preparations would 

 meet with ready stile, not only among Chinese and Japanese in the United States and 

 its island possessions, hut also among natives. The forms of " kombu " which are 

 likely to prove most acceptable to the American palate are the powders, films, and 

 dried sticks. It occurred to the writer that the crisp sticks might lie broken into 

 small pieces and serve as a breakfast dish, like oatmeal or other cereal. An Osaka 

 manufacturer accordingly prepared some in the form of small rectangular flake-, 

 which, when moistened with milk or hot water, formed a very wholesome and agree- 

 able dish. 



KELP AND OTHEI! SKAWKEDS CONTAINING IODINE. 



Alga 1 representing species identical with or similar to those used in Scotland, 

 France, and Japan in the manufacture of iodine abound on the northern coasts of 

 the United States, but tire never used for this purpose. In view of the large con- 

 sumption of iodine in the United States and the facility with which it may be 

 prepared, in crude form, at many places on the New England and North Pacific 



