302 LITTLE FOLKS 
The next man, the " Header," snatches him up, pulls off the 
head and tears out the intestines. Throwing out the liver, he 
dashes the rest overboard. 
The " Splitter" comes next, and, as you may guess, he cuts the 
wretched fish open from end to end, and cuts out the back bone. 
From this he removes the sounds, which are packed in barrels with 
the tongues, as a great delicacy. Then throws the bone overboard. 
The fourth man is the " Salter." But before he operates, Mr. 
Cod, or what is left of him, has a good bath in sea water. The 
"Salter" lays them, back up, with plenty of salt between. There 
they rest for weeks, and that's the reason they're so exceedingly 
salt. Then they are spread out for two or three days to dry, and 
are ready to be packed. 
It is said that a man can "head" sixteen thousand fish in a 
day. That's a pretty big story, but I suppose it is true. 
They generally weigh about fifteen pounds, but sometimes as 
much as fifty pounds. Cod are not the only fish caught ; sometimes 
a halibut will snatch the tempting bait, and then three or four men 
will have to help draw his solid two hundred pounds on deck. 
The liver, which I told you they saved, is made into cod liver 
oil, and I wouldn't advise you to go and see it done, unless you like 
strong odors, and never expect to take cod liver oil. 
There is one curious thing about Cod fish. When taken just 
before a storm, they are invariably found with big stones in their 
stomachs. In a large fish it \yill weigh several pounds. No one 
knows why he takes such a solid meal, but the fishermen think it 
is to anchor him during the storm and swell of the sea. 
When the sea is quiet again, I wonder if he stands on his head 
and lets this funny anchor roll out again? 
There's a Cod fishery on the banks by the Faeroe Islands, 
where are caught fresh Cod for the London market. To get them 
home fresh, vessels are welled, that is, a large tank occupies the 
middle of it, and holes in the sides allow the water to pass freely 
through it. The best of the fish are put in, and they seem to do as 
well as if they had never been caught. 
They often get quite tame on the journey, so that they will 
come and stick up their long smooth faces and big mouths, to take 
a crab or bit of meat out of one's hand. 
