522 
BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 
It is clieaper to can lobsters in tlie British Provinces than in the United States. 
In this country lobsters, when obtainable, do not cost much more than in the Prov- 
inces, but wages are at least 50 per cent higher here than in Canada, where the men 
receive about $ 1 per day and the women and children about 50 cents per day. In 
addition to this, there is a duty on tin in the United States, while that article is free 
of duty in the Provinces. 
The process of canning lobsters on the coast of Maine and in the British North 
American Provinces is as follows : 
The lobsters are first boiled in a large vat or kettle about 20 minutes, after Avhich 
they are lieaped on large tables, usually with the backs up, care being taken to have 
the bodies more or less straightened out. The boiling is frequently done in the after- 
noon, in order that the lobsters may have sufliicient time to cool during the night. The 
next morning certain men, designated as ‘^breakers,” break off the claws and tails from 
the bodies, throwing the latter with the refuse, for the reason that, though the carapax 
contains some good meat, it is difficult to extract and clean it. The sweetbreads, how- 
ever, are generally saved. The claws are then split by the “crackers,” using a small 
hatchet or cleaver, which opens them so that the meat can be readily taken out. 
Formerly the tail was split in a similar manner to the claws, but at present the meat 
is punched out from the tail by means of a small “thole” pin, or other suitable pointed 
implement. The meat is next thoroughly washed in water, the tin cans filled and 
weighed to insure uniformity, and then covered and cleaned, after Avhich they go to the 
sealers, who solder the covers down. Next comes the bathing, the most difficult iiart 
of the process. The cans are immersed in boiling water for about an hour, when they 
are taken out and “ vented,” a small hole being punched in the cover to release the air, 
after which they are sealed again and boiled for 2 hours longer. They are afterwards 
allowed to cool, tested to insure their being tight, and then scoured, painted, and 
labeled. If the cans are boiled in a retort, say at a steam pressure of 15 pounds 
to the square inch, which is equivalent to 250° F., the time of boiling is reduced about 
one-half.* 
The preservation of “ shell lobsters” was originated as early as 1840 in Christiania, 
Norway, by Jacob March. In that year he took out a patent in his native country 
for putting them up in such a manner as to exhibit the red color of fresh-boiled lobsters. 
It appears that he dipped them in boiling salt water until they reached this color, and 
then made an incision in the soft part under the tail, thus releasing the water within 
them, and then placed them in hermetically sealed vessels. The process was never 
emidoyed extensively and was abandoned within a few years. 
The canning of shell lobsters in this country was begun in 1879, at Southwest 
Harbor, Me. This jiroduct is the outgrowth of a demand in the British market for 
whole lobsters for garnishing purposes. Finding difficulty in obtaining lobsters, as 
commouly prepared for the trade, sufficiently fresh for this purpose, the London agent 
for one of the leading packing establishments in Maine suggested the idea of meeting 
this demand, and satisfactory results were obtained after many experiments. The 
lobsters, 12 and 14 inches in length and of good condition, are selected from the general 
stock and boiled, the tail bent under the body, and without being removed from the 
shell are packed in long cylindrical cans suitable for this purpose. The method of 
boiling is similar to that ordinarily used in canning lobsters, the only difference being 
*See The Fishery Industries of the United States, sec. v, vol. 2. 
