THE HERRING AND ITS ALIIES. 405 



coast from Cape Cod to Florida. It is used in the Chesapeake and in the 

 Albemarle regions, and on the Ogeechee, Savannah, and Altamaha Rivers, 

 where it is familiarly called "Hicks." In the St. John's River and 

 Alabama River the name " Hickory " Shad is also used. The derivation 

 of the name "Hickory" Shad cannot easily be traced. It maybe that 

 the word " Hickory " is used in a derogatory sense, but a more reasonable 

 explanation is that it refers to the striped markings on the fish, which re- 

 semble those upon the coarse cotton fabric known in the South as " Hick- 

 ory," and frequently used by the fishermen. 



In the Potomac the species is called the " Tailor Shad," or the " Fresh- 

 water Tailor," in contradistinction to the bluefish, which is called the 

 "Salt-water Tailor." The comparison between the bluefish and this 

 species is doubtless due to a fancied resemblance between their jaws, those 

 of the " Tailor Shad " being very long and strong. The " Tailor Shad " 

 may be distinguished from the common Shad and from the river Herrings 

 by the extreme projection and thickness of the lower jaw. This species is 

 in some rivers called a " Forerunner," from the fact that it makes its ap- 

 pearance shortly before the Shad. 



Col. McDonald writes as follows concerning this species: "The 

 •' Hickory Shad ' is most abundant in the region between the Chesapeake 

 Bay and Altamaha River and intermediate waters, ascending the rivers as 

 high as the Shad. In the St. John's River it is somewhat abundant* 

 making its appearance the first or second week in November, and shortly 

 before the Shad. North of New York it has not been observed to enter 

 the rivers in any great numbers, and there is no record north of Cape Cod 

 of its having been seen in fresh water. In the fall small schools of them 

 occasionally enter the brackish estuaries and tideways of Cape Cod." 



In the Altamaha River, Georgia, the catch of "Hickory" Shad is 

 equal to that of " Common " or " White Shad," and in the markets they 

 sell for more than one-half as much. In the St. John's River they are not 

 exceedingly abundant, and two " Hickory Shad " are equal in value to one 

 "White Shad." In the Ogeechee and Savannah Rivers the proportion of 

 the catch of the " Hickory" to that of "White Shad" is about one to 

 four. All taken here are used for local consumption, and are sold at prices 

 equal to about one-half of the White Shad. In the Albemarle they are less 

 abundant than farther south and are of less value. Here they are sold 

 Avith the herring for local consumption, two of them counting for one 



