﻿24 BULLETIN" 2, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



The elevator deposits the fish in an automatic measuring device, 

 which is of different form at different factories. It may have the 

 form of two bins provided with a device for diverting the stream 

 of fish into the other when the one has attained a certain weight, the 

 bottom of the loaded bin being opened at the same time. A form is 

 frequently found which has the shape of a cylinder divided into 

 segments and mounted so as to revolve horizontally on an axis. 

 When one segment of the cylinder has received a definite weight of 

 fish the cylinder is revolved through an angle, a new section is 

 brought into position to be filled, and the one filled is emptied. 



Measuring the catch is an important operation, as upon it is based 

 the bonus to be paid the fishermen. In the North the captain of the 

 steamer and perhaps his first officer are paid on the bonus basis, 

 while in certain parts of the South the entire crew are so compen- 

 sated. While fish are rated in thousands, less frequently in barrels, 

 actually they are not counted at all but are measured in bulk. The 

 space occupied by a single menhaden arbitrarily is taken as 22 cubic 

 inches ; however, since they vary so widely in size the volume of an 

 individual may be far from that. A thousand, accordingly, are con- 

 sidered to occupy 22,000 cubic inches. This bulk of fish, whether 

 occupied by 500 or 2,000, is rated as a thousand, weighs 666 pounds, 

 and is equal to 3^- barrels. 



From the measuring apparatus the fish are deposited in storage 

 bins from which they are carried as needed to the cookers. The trans- 

 fer may be made by cars or by automatic conveyors, depending on 

 the equipment of the plant. 



The operations so far mentioned are typical and are in vogue, with 

 slight modifications, in practically every plant on the Atlantic coast. 

 The subsequent treatment of the fish, however, varies widely with 

 respect to apparatus, though it follows in general one of two methods 

 which may be styled the old or discontinuous method and the new or 

 continuous process. Due to the gradual displacement of the old appa- 

 ratus by the new, all combinations of the two processes are found. 



COOKING (OLD METHOD). 



The old method of cooking in open vats is still in vogue in such a 

 number of factories as to justify its description here. The vats em- 

 ployed are usually situated on the second floor of the factory so that 

 the oil and water subsequently to be pressed from the cooked fish can 

 follow its prescribed course through the plant without the assistance 

 of pumps. They are constructed of wood or cement, with a false 

 bottom, beneath which are placed steam pipes. The individual vats 

 may have a capacity of about 20,000 fish, and the entire set of vats, 

 300,000 fish. They are arranged generally in two adjacent longitudi- 

 nal rows. Above them runs the track conveying the tramcars or the 



