THE COD AND COD—FISHERY 317 
and has reached as high for Labrador fish as $4 and even 
$4.20 per quintal, that for shore or Newfoundland fish 
having reached an average of $5.30. This difference in 
price needs explanation. It arises from the fact that cer- 
tain markets prefer the fish drier and harder salted than do 
other markets. In Labrador the fine days for drying fish are 
rare after the fishery is over; it is, therefore, better to 
ship the fish damper, or, as people say, “with only a day’s 
sun,’ rather than wait perhaps weeks to be able to dry 
the fish hard. There is, however, one other alternative, 
and that is to take the fish south ‘‘green”’ or unwashed in 
salt, and finish the cure in Newfoundland. If a man has 
few fish and plenty of help, he can thus employ himself 
at a remunerative wage to raise the value of his Labrador 
catch to that of shore fish. But if he has much fish and 
work to do on his little farm at home, or perhaps other 
better “paying work,” then he will ship direct from Labra- 
dor. It must be remembered that drying the fish entails 
loss of weight, and after all it may pay better to sell ten 
quintals at $3.50 a quintal than dry the same fish to 
eight quintals and sell at $4 or even $5 a quintal. More- 
over, some of the schooners have so many “freighters” 
and their gear to carry to and fro that they are unable to 
take their fish to Newfoundland whether they would wish 
it or not, while the merchants who have ordered steamers 
or schooners to go to Labrador for loads are so anxious 
for the fish to reach the markets early, that they will give 
at times considerable bonuses over the price arranged by 
the Chamber of Commerce. Last year men who refused 
$3.60 spot cash in Labrador realized only $3.to $3.20 in 
St. John’s. 
