AN UNPLEASANT BUSINESS.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 36, 6 November 1907, Page 3

AN UNPLEASANT BUSINESS.

THE HERRING GIRLS. Few housekeepers when they, opori a tin of kippered herrings for 'the supper havo ally *idea of tho- danger and hardships that had to be ovei'come o'er tho tinful had reached tho domestic cupboard. Oho of tho most unpleasant sides of the herring industry is the getting of the great catches. , . , Tho herrings are hauled on shore in baskets and'when full it takes four'of-those baskets t6 fill a barrel. As the baskets are filled and; tho crane lowers them ono by one on to the wooden pier, each basket is seized byj two men, and at once emptied into troughs, around which stand-th'o herring gutters. These,'at least in tho Shetlaiuls, are all females.' Tho herrings are pitched pell-mell into tho troughs, salt is thrown over them to allow the workers to get' a grip, scores of hands scizo them, thero is tlio llash of steel, and the next instant the herring—minus part, of its internal anatomy—is reclining in another basket set apart for tho pnrposo. It is really marvellous how quickly and deftly the girls perform the operation. i3ut gutting is very dirty work. The girls work with bare arms, small woollen shawls over their heads, and many of them wear oilskin skirts anil thick hoots. As tho -salt is thrown over every fresh batch of herrings it gradually melts and makes a sort of brine, and this splashes all over the place.. '■

Sometimes a bad cut is the result of overquickness, the dirt and salt get in, and a bad sore follows. Tho herring girls, as thoy are locally called, are divided into "crews" of tlirco,'two gutters and one packer being allotted to each crew.

The crews are paid Sd.por barrel, and when the. herrings are-plentiful fair wages can bo earned. It often happens that tho same girls engage in the work year after year, especially in the case of local girls. Hundreds are, however, brought into Shetland every year from Scotland, and for these latter special provision has to be made. The curer charters a steamer to bring the girls from Scotland, and the same steamer takes them safely back again. Also, tho curer finds the girls cottages to live in, provides fuel, and sometimes oil for the lamps,_ while the girls find their own food, do their own cooking, and keep their rooms clean. The cottages are usually built of wood, with corrugated iron roofs, f-wo rooms to a cottage, each room containing two crews, that is six girls. Furniture is very scarce. Sometimes chairs are provided, but more often than not the girls sit on their boxes. Tho beds are built into recesses in the walls, and are callcd "bunks " It goes without saying that the girls who work as cutters and packers must be strong and healthy. No delicate girl could possibly stand the long hours in all kinds of weather the rough food, the dirty, work, the sordid surroundings. When tlie fishing is slack tho girls arc employed in the yards doing odd jobs at 3d. per hour.