384 
BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES PISH COMMISSION. 
by iiackiug cases of frozen flsb into small truck cars holding from 1 to 2 tons each. The cars are 
taken upon local steamers that radiate from Hamburg to many far and near ports. During 1895 ship- 
ments from Hamburg brought from 30 to 60 pfennig, (or from 7^ to 15 cents) net a pound, freight 
excepted. 
In connection with the present quite large shipmeuts of fish to Europe, notice of a small shipment 
from New England to Hamburg as far back as 1876 is of interest. During March of that year Mr. 
J. L. Griffin, then engaged in the fish business at Eastport, Me., made an experimental shipment of 
fresh frozen salmon that had been taken from the waters of New Brunswick. Mr. Griffin states: 
‘■'The salmon having been frozen solid were packed iii a box which was inclosed within a second 
box with an air chamber of l^- inches between the boxes. These were placed inside of a third packing 
case with a space of 1 inch between, this space being filled with sawdust. The fish arrived at Ham- 
burg in good condition, but could not find any market as fresh frozen fish, such an article then being 
unknown. The frost having been removed, the fish were smoked and met a ready sale.” 
This small shipment not meeting with success, the attempt to introduce fresh frozen salmon from 
the Atlantic coast to Europe was for the time discontinued. After many years, with new methods 
of freezing, packing, and shipping, it has been successfully and extensively renewed from the Pacific 
coast. 
For the purpose of economizing in freight charges on ice, the following method is 
used for shipping frozen salmon and other fish from the Pacific to Atlantic coast 
lioints: The frozen fish are first carefully packed in boxes and placed in refrigerator 
cars previously reduced to a low temperature, the floor of which is covered with 
several inches of cold sawdust. Between the boxes of fish and the sides, ends, and 
top of the car is a space of several inches, which is also filled with cold sawdust 
tightly packed. When filled, the car is at once closed, and no ice is placed in the 
tanks, as it is found by extensive experience that fish so packed for shipment reach 
their destination in perfect condition, even after a passage of two weeks or more. 
Messrs. Seufert Bros. Co., of The Dalles, Oregon, state : 
With frozen salmon, the fish are frozen solid as soon as caught, piled in cold storage like cord 
wood in a woodhouse, until time gives a chance for packing, which is done at our leisure. Then they 
are dipped in cold water and taken out at once. This forms a very thin coat of ice on them. They 
are then wrapped in oiled paper with an extra heavy paper wrapped over that. They are then put in 
boxes of 300 pounds net fish, lined with 2 iaper, and held in cold storage as long as one wishes. When 
they are shipped in refrigerator cars we put 6 inches of sawdust on the floor of the cars. The boxes 
are so made that we have about 2 or 3 inches space from the side of cars, which is filled with saw- 
dust, and the top is filled over with 6 inches of sawdust. This sawdust must be fine and dry. Then 
we put 2 tons of ice in the car boxes with 2 sacks of salt, and the car is ready for a freight run across 
the continent of from 11 to 14 days. On reaching New York the fish are put in cold storage. If they 
go foreign, they go directly into the steamer’s cold rooms and are not ojieued until they reach their 
destination. Frozen salmon will keep perfectly for 10 months; after that they lose ground. 
The process of refrigeration applied to sturgeon on the Columbia Eiver when 
shipped to eastern markets is as follows: 
The fish are first beheaded, eviscerated, and skinned. The backlmne is then removed and the 
fish cut into suitable sections for freezing. The sections are j^acked into galvanized-irou luins 24 
inches long, 16 inches wide, and 5 inches deejr. The pans are then jiut into a fi’eezer charged with ice 
and salt, and their contents frozen into solid blocks of fish weighing about 60 jiounds co each pan. 
The 2 >i'ocess is 2 )recisely similar to that in vogue on the Great Lakes for freezing fish. When frozen, 
the fish are removed from the pans and packed in boxe.s, four blocks to each box, and then loaded into 
refrigerator cars. The cars are charged with ice and salt to keej) the tenujerature below the freezing 
jjoiut. In winter the cars do not usually require to be recharged liefore they roach tlieir destinatiou, 
but when the weather is warmer it is sometimes necessary to recharge with ice and salt once or more 
while in transit. ( Report U. S. Fish Commission, 1888, pp. 226, 227.) 
A process quite similar is applied to freezing sturgeon on the Delaware Eiver, 
the frozen fish being then stored for the fall and winter markets. 
