THE FRENCH SARDINE INDUSTRY. 
23 
During the first week of July, 1900, the wholesale prices of French sardines in 
New York were $10.50 to $14 per case for choice “quarter” oils, $6.75 to $11 for 
ordinary “quarter” oils, and $16 to $23 for boneless “ halves.” During the last week 
in December, 1900, the quotations were $8.50 to $12 for choice “quarter” oils, $7.25 
to $11 for ordinary “quarter” oils, $14 to $17 for choice “halves,” and $16 to $23 
for boneless “halves.” 
COMPARISON OF FRENCH AND AMERICAN SARDINES. 
Observation has shown that French sardines, when of the best quality, have a 
'’avor and richness which make them preferable to any sardine prepared on the 
Atlantic coast of the United States from the young of the sea herring; French sar- 
dines of average grade, even when canned in peanut and cotton-seed oil, are much 
superior in palatability to the great bulk of the American output; while the cheaper 
grades of French sardines — which unfortunately find a ready market in the United 
States — are certainly not preferable to much of the native pack. 
The conditions which underlie the general superiority of the French canned sar- 
dines, and the steps which may be adopted in America for narrowing the gap which 
now separates the product of the two countries, appear to the writer to be chiefly as 
follows: 
(1) The methods adopted in the French sardine fishery result in the landing of 
the fish in excellent condition. This is the main object and is never lost sight of. 
The fish are caught singly in a delicate mesh, removed by hand, carefully kept on 
board the boats so as to avoid crowding and mashing, counted by hand into small 
baskets, taken to the factories within a few hours after being caught, and promptly 
put through the preserving processes, so that ordinarily the deterioration which 
ensues is not worthy of mention. The sardine fishery on the coast of Maine is a 
weir fishery and the unit of measure is not the individual fish, as in France, but the 
hogshead. A large number of fish — sometimes a vast school— may be in a weir at 
one time, and are often held in the weir for many hours, sometimes for several days, 
during which they are without food, are incessantly harassed by their fellows and by 
other fish, and necessarily undergo deterioration; they are then taken from the trap 
with large dip nets and transferred to the collecting boat, where they are piled deep 
in bins or in the hold, and are often many hours in reaching the cannery. There the 
unloading results in further mashing, crushing, and bruising, so that by the time the 
sardines reach the cooking room they have lost so much of their flavor and firmness 
that no amount of subsequent care and no kind of oil or spice can replace or restore 
their quality. Although fish are liable to more rapid decomposition after capture 
than any other class of food animals, there are no products with which greater 
liberties are taken, and none in which the lack of care results so disastrously; this is 
especially true of the American sardine, and, in the writer’s opinion, is largely 
responsible for the unsatisfactory quality of the canned fish. 
(2) In France the sardines caught in the early part of the season are not canned, 
because they are not in the best condition. It is only after the fish have become fat 
that they are considered suitable for canning. The fattening depends on an abun- 
dance of proper food, and along with it is an improvement in the flavor and general 
quality of the flesh. In the case of our sardines, fishing for the canneries is carried 
on from April to December, without reference to the fatness of the fish. 
