PRESERVATION OF FISHERY PRODUCTS FOR POOD. 
359 
Tlie processes generally employed for retarding i)ntrefaction in lish by low temper- 
ature are (1) simple cooling with block or crushed ice, (2) open-air refrigeration during 
cold weather, and (3) artificial freezing and subse(pieut cold storage. The first 
process is employed quite generally thnjughout all countries in which ice is obtain- 
able, in transporting the fish from the source of supply to the wholesale markets and 
thence to the retail stands, and in preserving the fish while awaiting immediate sale. 
The second is used principally in the winter herring and smelt trade with the British 
North American Provinces, and the third in preparing them fresh for very long ship- 
ments and in storing them for several weeks or months to await a better market. 
All of these methods are of comparatively recent development, the oldest in general 
use — cooling with ice — being used commercially only about 70 years, and doubtless 
none of them have yet reached their highest development. 
COOLING FISH WITH ICE. 
Probably half of the fishery food-products in the United vStates are preserved in 
ice for transportation to the markets and in holding them for immediate sale, and this 
is also true witli respect to England and possibly some other countries of northern 
Enroi)e. The process does not result in freezing the fish, the resulting temperature 
being never less than 32° F. The ice adds greatly to the expense, especially in 
transportation, and conhnes the process to preserving hsh for brief periods of time. 
The use of ice for iireserviug hsh in the United States began in 1838, when a 
Gloucester smack is reported to have carried ice with which to iireserve the halibut 
dying in the well or killed before being placed there. For a number of years there was 
a strong prejudice against iced hsh, almost equal to the present opposition to frozen hsh, 
and it was not until 1845 that it became common for vessels to carry ice as a preserva- 
tive. Care was at first taken that the ice be kept separate from the hsh, being placed 
in a corner of the hold. It was soon found, however, that stowing the hsh in crushed 
ice did not materially injure them, and this method was soon in general use and 
largely superseded the trade in live hsh north of Cape Cod. 
For many years after ice was introduced in the vessel hsheries it was still thought 
inadvisable to ship iced hsh inland, and not until 1858 could New England dealers be 
induced to experiment in sending them as far as New York City, but as the experiment 
was successful a large trade was quickly developed, and iced hsh are now shipped to 
all parts of the United States. 
The usual method of apj)lyiug the ice is to crush it and mix it with the hsh in 
successive layers of ice and hsh. The process requires no great skill, yet there must 
be a good knowledge as to the quantity of ice necessary, the most economical size 
of the pieces, the convenient form of the receptacle, and the manner of packing — all 
of which depend on the kind and quantity of hsh, the length of time for which they 
are to be held, and the temperature of the atmosphere. Fresh hsh should have the 
very best of care in handling at the originating point, be promptly and thoroughly 
chilled, and so placed in the shipping box or barrel that bruising and the possibility 
of an increase in temperature are reduced to a minimum. It is advisable that hsh 
be killed immediately after capture, as this prevents their thrashing about and bruising 
themselves, and they remain hriner and bear shipment better than those allowed to 
die slowly. Bleeding the hsh is very frequently advantageous, but it is rarely done 
unless the hsh are to be dressed. The jiractice of piling freshly-caught hsh en masse. 
