PRESERVATION OF FISHERY PRODUCTS FOR FOOD. 
531 
From Mr. Hall’s excellent report on the Herring Industry of the Passamaquoddy 
Region ” is extracted the following tabular statement, showing the cost per case of 
quarter-oil sardines in 1895, the statement being prepared on a basis of seven cases 
for convenience in manipulating some of the items. 
statement of the cost per case of quarter-oil sardines in 1895. 
Material: 
Tin ]ilate for 7 cases, at $3.40 per box $3. 43 
Decorating 35 sheets of tin plate 58 
Oil for 7 cases, at 30 cents per gallon 2. 10 
Solder for 7 cases, at 25 cents per case 1. 75 
Fuel for soldering, soldering coppers, and acid. . . .21 
Shooks and nails for 7 cases. 53 
Fish, at $3.14 per hogshead 1.10 
Coal, wood, sawdust, and salt 12 
Waste of material, 1 per cent 10 
Material for 7 cases 9. 92 
Material for 1 case 1. 42 
Labor : 
Cutting, rimming, and bending tin 20 
Cutting two-thirds of 1 box of tin on dies 14 
Seaming cans for 7 cases, at 5 cents per case 35 
Making cans for 7 cases, at 12 cents per case 84 
Sealing cans for 7 cases, at 30 cents per case 2. 10 
Cutting and flaking fish lor 7 cases, at 10 cents 
per case 70 
Packing 7 cases, at 10 cents per case 70 
Making 7 cases, at 1 cent per case 07 
General labor on 7 cases, at 18 cents per case 1. 26 
Labor — Continued. 
Trucking 7 cases, at 1 cent per case 07 
Labor for 7 cases 6. 43 
Labor for 1 case 92 
Expenses of shipping and selling : 
Freight on 7 cases, at 10 cents per case 70 
Commission on 7 cases, at 5 per cent. 87 
Discount of 1 per cent for cash payment 17 
Fire and marine insurance 06 
Expenses on 7 cases 1. 80 
Expenses on 1 case 25 
Total cost of 7 cases 18. 15 
Total cost of 1 case 2. 59 
Summary of the cost per case: 
Material 1.42 
Labor 92 
Cost at cannery 2.34 
Expenses of shipping and selling 25 
Total cost per case 2. 59 
Mr. Hall further states : 
An estimate similar to the above, made in 1886, showed the cost of quarter-oils at that time to he 
$4 per case at the factory. The material then cost $2.83 and the labor $1.17, whereas the material now 
costs $1.42 and the labor 92 cents, a total of $2.34 per case. The cost per case was therefore $1.66 or 
41| per cent less in 1895 than in 1886. In the estimate for 1886 the fish were reckoned at $6 per hogshead, 
hut the average for that year was about $9; hence it is probable that the actual difference in the cost 
of production was even greater than these figures show. It will he noticed that the reduction in cost 
since 1886 has been more largely in material than in labor, the cost of material in 1895 being nearly 
50 per cent less than in 1886, while that of labor Avas only 21|- per cent less. Of the total difference, 85 
per cent is in material and 15 per cent in labor. Prior to 1886 the cost of manufacturing sardines 
was somewhat greater than it has been at any time since, hut it was probably never more than about 
$7 per case. The price of the products has therefore fallen much more rapidly than the cost of pro- 
duction, and consequently the profits have been constantly diminishing. It was not until after 1880 
that the cheapening of the cost of the products became an imperative necessity. 
In the strong competition between the various manufacturers the quality of the goods has in a 
measure been sacrificed to the interest of producing large quantities. When the industry was first 
established, it was the ambition of the packers to make the quality of the domestic product equal, if 
possible, to that of the sardines imported from France and other countries, and thus secure at least a 
part of the trade which was then wholly supplied by the foreign manufacturers. It was also hoped 
that when the supply should exceed the demand of the home market the surplus stock might be 
exported. To this end, therefore, the best quality of material was used, and the greatest care was 
exercised in the methods of preparation, and for a few years the (juality of sardines put up at Eastport, 
while somewhat inferior to the best, was equal to that of the average brands imported. Had these 
efforts been continued until the present time, it seems not improbable that a still higher standard 
of excellence would have been attained. Attention was, however, soon directed toward reducing the 
cost of the products. One of the most important changes made was that of substituting cotton-seed 
and nut oils of various kinds for olive oil. This practice began to some extent before 1880, hut 
did not become general until after that date. The cheaper oils were first introduced for frying the 
fish, hut in a short time they were also used for packing them in the cans. Changes have also been 
made in the methods of preparing sardines in order to render the performance of the work more rapid 
and thus increase the capacity of the canneries at a reduced ratio of cost. 
