This section is from the book "Facts Worth Knowing", by Robert Kemp Philip. Also available from Amazon: Inquire Within for Anything You Want to Know.
To a peck of sprats put two pounds of salt. three ounces of bay salt, one pound of saltpetre, two ounces of prunella, and a few grains of cochineal; pound them all in a mortar, then put into a stone pan or anchovy barrel, first a layer of sprats, and then one of the compound, and so on alternately to the top. Press them down hard; cover them close for six months, and they will be fit for use, and will readily produce a most excellent flavoured sauce. A large trade is done in this article, especially for making anchovy oaste or sauce, when a little more colouring is added.
 
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