468 
BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 
onions, Bay leaves, horse-radish, cloves, ginger, coriander seed, and capers or their equivalents. When 
all are used, the following (according to Mr. Henry Sellman) is about the usual proportion for every 
120 pounds of fish: Vinegar, 2 gallons; allspice, pounds; sliced onions, 4 pounds; sliced horse-radish, 
2 pounds; bay leaves, 1 pound; cloves, ^ pound; ginger, ^ pound; chile pepper, pound; coriander 
seed, ^ pound; capers, 2^ ounces. 
The fish are packed in kegs of uniform size, containing about 7 pounds. A small quantity of 
vinegar and a thin layer of the other ingredients are placed in the bottom of the keg, and a layer of 
fish, placed back upward, are put in and gently pressed down. Another small quantity of vinegar and 
thin layer of the other ingredients are then put in and another layer of fish, and so on until the keg 
is full, when a small quantity of vinegar is poured over the whole and the keg headed up. In order 
that the fish may be well flavored they should be prepared some days before being placed on the 
market. This length of time varies, according to the temperature, from about four days in summer to 
three or four weeks in winter. When properly prepared the fish will readily keep a year or longer 
without spoiling. 
The preparation of herring in this manner was begun at Eastport, Maine, in 1874, 
and since then has been confined to the eastern jiortion of that State. Later it was 
found convenient to simply salt and dress the herring at Eastport and ship them in 
barrels to New York City dealers, who j)ack them in kegs for the market, and this is 
the way in which the business is generally conducted at present. 
The fish are either shipped in the barrel in which they are being salted, or, as is 
more commonly the case, they are packed in shipping barrels after being dressed. In 
packing, each layer of fish is sprinkled with dry salt. On arrival in New York City 
they are subjected to the same treatment described above. The quantity of Eussian 
sardines prepared annually in this country amounts to about 60,000 7-pound kegs, 
worth about $27,000. 
The following is a popular method of preparing these herring on the shores of the 
Baltic Sea in Norway: 
The fish are placed in vinegar weakened by the addition of 25 per cent of water, and to which 
a particle of salt has been added. In this bath the fish remain for about 24 hours, wheu they are 
removed and the vinegar drained off. Some persons place the fish for 12 hours in vinegar which has 
not been weakened with water, the important point being that they must be taken out before the 
skin becomes flabby. The fish are then carefully packed in kegs or jars with the following preserva- 
tives and spices, the quantities given being sufficient for 80 herring : Fine salt, 1 pound; powdered 
sugar or sometimes brown sugar, 1 ijound; black pepper, 4 ounce; bay leaves, 4 ounce; saltpeter, 4 
ounce; s.andal, i ounce; cloves, 4 ounce; ginger, 4 ounce; Spanish hops, 4 ounce. Others use the 
following spices: Salt, 1 pound; sugar, 4 pound; allspice, 1 ounce; pepper, 1 ounce; cloves, 4 ounce; 
Spanish hops, 4 ounce. In this mixture the herring should be left for at least two months before 
using, and if the brine should leak oft', additional brine made of Luneburg salt should be added; and 
under favorable conditions the product will keep for years. 
CHRISTIANIA ANCHOVIES, BTC. 
In the preparation of Christiania anchovies many methods and flavoring ingredi- 
ents are used, depending on the skill and ideas of the carer and the markets for 
which the preparation is intended. The following is one of the most popular processes : 
The fresh sprat or anchovies are immersed in brine for 12 or 18 hours, 15 pounds of Liverpool 
salt being used for each 100 pounds of fish. On removal, the fish are drained in a sieve and then 
loosely packed in a barrel, with the following ingredients, which have previously been finely crushed 
and well mixed: 4 pounds of Luneburg salt, 6 units of pepper, 6 units of sugar, 6 units of English 
spices, 1 unit of cloves, 1 unit of nutmeg, and 1 unit of Spanish pepper. The anchovies remain 
saturated with these ingredients for 2 weeks, when they are repacked tightly in kegs or barrels, 
being carefully arranged in layers, with the backs downward. A quantity of the ingredients above 
