26 
BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STA.TES FISH COMMISSION. 
THE CANNING PROCESSES. 
When the salmon collected from the various streams by the cannery steamers are 
brought to the fish wharf, they are transferred to the flsh-bins by men armed with 
pews (single tined forks). These men stand knee-deep in fish on the steamer or scow, 
impale one or two fish at a time, and by a rapid movement toss them to the top of 
the wharf, where others, also using pews, toss them into bins. The men become veiy 
expert in the use of these implements, and a constant stream of fish seems to flow 
from the steamer or scow to the wharf and thence to the bins. Elevators are used 
in some canneries, but they are not common in Alaska. 
Solderiug machine. 
It is claimed that fish should be twenty-four hours out of the water before packing, 
so as to allow them to shrink, as when packed perfectly fresh so much juice is formed 
that in “blowing,” after cooking, light weights are produced. In the fish-house and 
near the bins are arranged the butchers’ tables, where the fish are cleaned. A stream 
of water is kept playing over the fish in the bins to remove the dirt and slime that 
collect on them, and they are then transferred to the tables, where the “butcher,” 
after removing the head, seizes the fish by the tail, grasping it at the caudal peduncle, 
and with a few rapid strokes removes the fins, with one slash opens the fish along the 
ventral line, and by another removes the viscera. The fish is then transferred to a 
tank of water, where it is washed and scraped and the tail removed. In a well-regulated 
cannery it is passed to another tank of water, where it receives a second washing, 
scraping, and final brushing with a whisk-like broom. Being then thoroughly clean, 
the fish is transferred to large bins on either side of the cutting machine. 
