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Thele Herrings being brought to our town for Hile about the mid- 

 dle of March, I dilfe^ted fix of them, and I found in that fubllance 

 which I took out of one of their ftomachs, three Hving worms, all of 

 the fame Ihape, and fomewhat thicker than an hair ; but, about 

 four hairs breadth diftance from their heads, their bodies, which 

 in that part were round, were about four times thicker. 



This Herring had been dead at leall twenty-four hours before I 

 examined it, and perhaps thefe worms might have lived a long time, 

 if they had remained in the chyle and within the stomach. 



Moreover, in thefe worms or animalcules, I faw a vein, bent in a 

 ferpentine form, and of a blackifh colour, lying the whole length of 

 the animal, and near this vein certain fmall round particles driven to 

 and fro with great fwiftnefs, affording me a very pleafant Ipectacle. 



Another of the Herrings had nothing except a certain red matter 

 in its llomach, which, upon viewing it by the microfcope, I thought 

 I faw to confift of certain round particles, which were almoll ground 

 down by the aftion of the llomach ; and I faw that they had been 

 compofed of many veflels : this was alfo the appearance of the 

 white chyle which I took out of the ftomachs of all thefe Herrings. 



Seeing thefe things, I did not wonder that fifhermen fliould im- 

 agine Herrings have no food in their ftomachs, becaufe Herrings 

 do, in my opinion, feed on fuch fmall fifties, that they cannot take 

 in fufticient quantities of them to diftend their ftomachs, as we fee 

 in other fifli; and hence it is faid, that Herrings have no food 

 within their llomachs. 



Now, fince we find fo fmall a portion of food in the ftomachs of 

 Herrings, and yet that they are fo fat at the time, when, as I faid 

 before, their roes are yet very fmall, we muft conclude that Her- 

 rings are continually feeding, and that their food consists of fuch 

 minute fillies as efcape the eyes of the fifliermcn, whereas other 

 fiflies are accuftomed to cram their ftomaclis with larger fiflies, and 

 to fuch a degree, that fometimes they are diftcnded to a fifth or 

 lixth part of the fifli's own bulk ; and therefore it is, that the fiflies 



