REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONER OF FISHERIES. 158 
taken. Where 30 or 40 boats are engaged in fishing, the boat’s account 
and that of the cannery do not always agree, and frequently long and 
heated arguments ensue. This difficulty is partially overcome by a 
device, consisting of two levers fastened to a rod acting on a self- 
recording machine, attached to the elevator that carries the fish under 
the rotary cutting machine, the levers hanging perpendicularly through 
a slot running the whole length of the elevator, and so arranged that 
when a fish is placed upon it and reaches a certain point, the levers 
are forced up, thereby causing the machine to register. On being 
released, the levers drop through the slots, where they remain until 
another fish forces them up. While this apparatus does not insure an 
absolutely correct count on the part of the fishermen, it acts as a great 
check. Daily readings from the register give the exact number of 
fish packed, also the number of each species. 
Titling the cans.—Uaving passed through the cutter, the salmon are 
now ready to be received by the filling machine, which cuts the sec- 
tions longitudinally into the required size and at the same time fills the 
can. The Munn filling machine is about 7 feet high, and is built at an 
angle. It is fed from the top into the hopper, the mouth of which is 
the same shape as on a hand coffee mill. The pieces of salmon fall 
from the mouth down a chute, and are forced by two dogs into a 
receptacle through which the plunger, or filler, passes. The plunger 
in making a stroke cuts the salmon and at the same time fills the can 
within a fraction of an ounce of the required weight. Generally the 
cans overrun in weight; occasicnaily afew are weighed to see whether 
the machine is working properly. 
Cans are led to the filler from the floor above by means of a belt, 
attached to which are wire racks about + inches apart, set at an angle 
to prevent the salt from spilling out. When a can arrives opposite 
the filler it is caught by a clasp or hook and held in front of the 
plunger, which is immediately thrust forward through a chamber 
filled with salmon, cutting the fish and at the same time filling the can. 
When in good working order, the machine will fill from 60 to 65 cans 
a minute, and when running at full speed can fill as many as 80 a 
minute. It is quite complicated in construction, but is easily kept in 
repair, and fills a long-felt want in salmon canning, performing as it 
does the labor of from 15 to 20men. Its average guaranteed capacity 
per day is 800 cases, or 38,400 cans of 1 pound each; 48,000 cans have 
been filled by one machine for several days in succession. On being 
released by the clamp the cans roil on to along table and are picked up 
by aman stationed there, who strikes each one down upon a square 
piece of lead weighing about 10 pounds, in order to settle the contents 
to the bottom, and for the purpose of detecting any deficiency in 
weight. So expert do these men become that the slightest variation 
in the quantity of salmon is detected. Cans that are not up to the 
