Fish Oils and the Fisheries connected therewith. 213 



is sent to England, as the American import duty is so high- 

 The value of the crude cod oil shipped from Newfound- 

 land amounts to about ;£'i 10,000, and of the refined cod oil 

 from ;£^io,ooo to ;^i 5,000. The export of cod oil from the 

 French Newfoundland fisheries in the five years ending 

 1 87 1 averaged 560,000 kilogrammes. In 1876, 2,819,000 

 kilogrammes of fish oil were imported into Havre. 



The medicinal qualities of cod-liver oil have long been 

 fully proved, and its manufacture has been a great 

 source of wealth to the fishing colony of Newfoundland. 

 Like all good things, however, it is easily imitated. The 

 common cod oil, made by the putrifying process, has often 

 been refined by animal charcoal, filtered so as to deprive it 

 of all bad smell (the iodine and all other medicinal qualities 

 having passed away by putrefaction- in the manufacture), 

 and it is then palmed off by dishonest dealers as the 

 genuine article. 



The cod livers reserved for the preparation of medicinal 

 oil are all very carefully examined, and those that are poor, 

 have sustained injury, or have portions of gall adhering, are 

 removed. The selected livers are then thoroughly washed 

 and afterwards dried. The fishermen — many of whom make 

 the oil themselves, or sell to larger makers — put these pre- 

 pared livers immediately into open barrels, where the oil 

 slowly exudes, and, rising to the top, is removed with large 

 spoons. It is, when quite cold, filtered three or four times 

 through bibulous paper, and the preparation is complete. 

 Nothing more remains but to pour it into tin cans or oak 

 barrels, and it is ready for market. The oil is of a straw 

 yellow, with scarcely any smell or taste, and is known as 

 natural medicinal oil. ' 



In the mean time other fishermen, having carefully 

 sorted, washed, and dried the livers, place them in a pot 



