The rind from trees was used by Newfoundland fishermen to cover stages, to cover salt fish on flakes and to
line the bottom of the salt pounds. After the salt fish was dried and ready for market it would be shipped out by boat and
the rind was used to line the bottom and sides of the vessel to prevent dunage (spoilage). The hole of the vessel was usually
dirty and the layer of rind kept the fish from coming in contact with any dirt or bacteria in the hole of the boat. Every
community around the coast depended on the fishery and rind was in big demand. This did a lot of damage to the forest because
within five or six months after removing the rind the boughs of the tree would turn from green to red and the tree would dry
up and die. The portion of the tree where the rind was removed would turn white and this type of tree was referred to as a
"white end". There were vast numbers of white ends and people would cut some of them each fall for firewood but not all the
trees that were destroyed in this way were utilized. Many were left to fall down and rot in the forest. The trees that were
being used for the rind were the best fir trees that were free of knots because a knot in the rind left a hole. The rind needed
to be water proof so the rain would not get into the fish pile and destroy the fish.
Collecting rind meant a great deal of work for the fishermen and their families. Removing rind required some skill and
many were very good at the task. A tomahawk or hatchet was used to cut around the top of the tree as high up as the rinder
could reach and the same cut was made around the bottom of the tree. A straight vertical cut was made from the top cut to
the bottom cut. The rinder then applied a cinder shovel and spoon called a shin and by prying gently and going around the
tree they could easily remove the rind. The sap in the tree made the job simple. The rind would curl up in the same shape
of the tree and ten rinds would be stacked together in a tidy round bundle which made it easy for carrying. A bundle of ten
rinds was referred to as a niche of rind and according to Calvin Prince the men from Princeton would recite this old rhyme
as they worked;
"two and two is four, two is a couple more, this one and that one, and two is a niche of rind".
Children were also expected to help carry the niche of rind home and to help with the drying process. Any young lad who
was unable to carry a niche for at least one mile was referred to as a "warm flow" or "hang ashore" and was told that he would
not be able to earn his pay in the fishery. After the rind was brought home it would be spread out and placed in flat piles
with big rocks on each end to keep them in place until they were completely dried. After the drying process the rinds remained
flat and were ready for use in the stages and boats.
Taking rind from trees had always caused much damage to the forest but after the railway line opened the destruction increased
in the Princeton area because many people from Bonavista and other communities further down the peninsula where forest resources
were very scarce, would come up on train and collect the rind. There was always a healthy forest resource in the Princeton
area but as this continued the areas of white ends became bigger and bigger until something had to be done to conserve the
forest. Andrew Quinton of Princeton was hired by the government as a Forestry Warden and it was his job to go around and stop
people from taking the rind from the trees. This process became illegal and anyone caught removing rind was charged. This
eventually ended due to government enforcement as well as modernization in the fishing industry. As refrigeration became available
most of the cod was sold to fish plants where it was fresh frozen and any salted dried cod was done on trays made of mesh
or some other material. As the old method of using rind in the salt fish trade became outdated, enforcement was no longer
needed.
