a distance of fifty miles; and, perhaps, even further. An idea of the number of Haddocks may be formed from the following circumstance: Three fishermen, within a mile of the harbour of Scarborough, frequently loaded their boat with these fish twice a day, taking each time a ton weight of them.

The flesh of the Haddock is harder and thicker than that of the whiting, and not so good; but it is often brought upon the table as a good dish, either broiled, boiled, or baked, and is esteemed by many above several others. The Haddocks caught on the Irish coast, near Dublin, are unusually large, and of a fine flavour; they have, with the firmness of the turbot, much of its sweetness.

Is seldom more than twelve inches in length, and of a slender and tapering form. The scales are small and fine. The back is silvery, and when just taken out of the sea, reflects the rays of light with great lustre and gloss. The flesh is light, wholesome, and gently nourishing: it is often allowed to sick people and convalescent stomachs, when other food is deemed hurtful. The Whiting is found in all parts, about the coasts of England, and is in its proper season from August to February.

Is from three to four feet in length, and some have been caught much longer. The body is long, the head flat, the teeth in the upper jaw small and numerous, with a small beard on the chin; it has two dorsal fins, two pectoral ones, and one ventral.

They abound on the coasts of Great Britain and Ireland, and great quantities are salted for home consumption and exportation. On the eastern coasts of England they are in their greatest perfection from the beginning of February to the end of May. They spawn in June; at this season the males separate from the females, who deposit their eggs in the soft oozy ground at the mouth of large rivers.

In a commercial point of view, the Ling may be considered a very important fish. Nine hundred thousand pounds weight are annually exported from Norway. In England these fish are caught and cured in somewhat the same manner as the cod. Those which are caught off the shores of America are by no means so much esteemed as those which frequent the coasts of Great Britain and Norway; and the Ling in the neighbourhood of Iceland are so bad, that the inhabitants are unable to find a sale for them in any country except their own.

Is taken and well known in all parts of the world. It is usually about a foot in length, or more; the body is thick, firm, and fleshy, slender toward the tail; the snout sharp, the tail forked, the back of a lovely green, beautifully variegated, or, as it were, painted with black strokes; the belly is of a silvery colour, reflecting, as well as the sides, the most elegant tints, imitating the opal and the mother of pearl. Nothing can be more interesting and pleasing to the eye, than to see them, just caught, brought on shore by the fishermen, and spread, with all their radiancy, upon the pebbles of the beach, at the first rays of the rising sun; but when they are taken out of their element, they quickly die.

Mackerel visit our shores in vast shoals; but, from being very tender and unfit for long carriage, they are found less useful than other gregarious fish. The usual bait is a bit of red cloth, or a piece of the tail of the Mackerel. The great fishery for them is in some parts of the west coast of England. This is of such an extent as to employ, in the whole, a capital of nearly two hundred thousand pounds. The fishermen go out to the distance of several leagues from the shore, and

stretch their nets, which are sometimes several miles in extent, across the tide during the night. A single boat has been known to bring in, after one night's fishing, a cargo that has been sold for nearly seventy pounds. The roes of the Mackerel are used in the Mediterranean for caviar. In Cornwall, and in several parts of the continent, Mackerel are preserved by pickling and salting; and in this state they have a little the flavour of salmon. Their voracity has scarcely any bounds; and when they get among a shoal of herrings, they make such havock, as frequently to drive it away.

THE GAR-FISH,

Of which the figure above is an exact representation, is of a very extraordinary form. The body is not unlike that of a mackerel, for the shape and colour, but the nose, or upper jaw, is protracted into a kind of lance, nearly as long, in itself, as the rest of the body. It is vulgarly supposed that this fish precedes and leads the phalanxes of mackerel through the regions of the deep; and, as a faithful and well informed pilot, traces to them the way, points out their dangers, and conducts them to their destination. A curious singularity is, that the bones of this creature are of a bright green colour; the flesh is not so firm nor of so good a flavour as that of the mackerel, but yet the fish sells well whenever it comes to market.

COMES next after the mackerel in shape, as well as in delicacy of taste, although it differs much in flavour. It is about nine or ten inches long, and about two and a half broad, and has bloodshot eyes; it has large roundish scales; a forked tail; the body is of a fat, soft, delicate flesh, but stronger than that of the mackerel, and therefore less wholesome. Yet some people are so very fond of it, that they call the Herring the King of Fishes. They swim in shoals, and spawn once a year, about the autumnal equinox, at which time they are the best. These swarms of fish emigrate from the northern seas, and in an immense column travel gently down till they arrive at the farthest point of the British islands, and then divide into two or three branches. One, following the coast of Holland, steers through the British Channel, leaving plenty after them in the fishermen's nets. The second branch, which is the smallest, enters St. George's Channel between Great Britain and Ireland. The western part of the column, or third division, follows the western coast of Ireland,