216 THE NATURAL HISTORY OF 



of the Cod were on the coasts of Iceland and the Western 

 Isles of Scotland, where the English resorted in quest of 

 them as early as the beginning of the fifteenth century. 

 Our right of fishing on these parts, however, was not ac- 

 knowledged by the government of Denmark, till the reign 

 of James I., whose marriage with a princess of that country 

 secured to his subjects the indulgence, of which they availed 

 themselves so completely that they had then one hundred 

 and fifty ships employed in the Iceland fishery. Even on 

 the banks of Newfoundland, the French, Spaniards, and 

 Portuguese, had originally a far larger portion of the 

 fishery than the British ; in 1570, the former nations had 

 upwards of three hundred vessels employed in that trade, 

 when those of the English did not exceed fifty. Matters, 

 however, have since been reversed ; and the English ship- 

 ping on that coast has immensely increased : it is now su- 

 perior to that of any other nation, and the trade is deemed 

 a valuable accession to the wealth of individuals, as well as 

 to the naval power of the empii-e. Twenty thousand British 

 seamen are at present employed in this fishery, which is con- 

 ducted in a tract of the sea agitated by a perpetual swell, 

 and involved in continual darkness by means of a thick fosr 

 that constantly hangs over it. In the Cod fish, the sight is 

 probably very imperfect; for almost every small body that 

 is agitated by the water attracts their rapacity, stones and 

 pebbles not excepted, for these are often found in their 

 stomachs. The general weight of the cod-fish on the 

 British coasts is from fourteen to forty pounds ; some indeed 

 have been caught near eighty, but those of the middle size 

 are most esteemed for the table. Their time of spawning 

 is from January to April, when they deposit their eggs in 

 rough rocky ground. After having been exonerated of a 

 load containing frequently three millions of young, the 

 parent recovers its plumpness sooner almost than any other 

 fish; and is caught in good condition during almost the 

 whole summer. Sehoneved remarks a kind appointment of 



