THE ARGENTINA SILTJS. 503 



species being iu the habit, at certain seasons, of going 

 uji the mouth of rivers. Nilsson, who is my authority 

 for tlie i^receding, is of opinion that, though not yet 

 observed, it inhabits other of the Scandinavian seas, 

 especially those on the coast of Bohus-Liin. He further 

 states the length of this fish to be from rather loss than 

 seven inches to a maximum of nine inches. Kroyer, on 

 the other hand, savs its length is from one and a half to 

 two feet, and that it is met with on the coast of Norway as 

 high up as Stadt (lat. 62°). Both quote Osmerus Hehrklicus, 

 Yarr., as synonym, though the latter objects to Yarrell's 

 description as being incomplete and superficial, and his 

 wood-cut unsatisfactory. He also finds fault with Yarrell 

 for not being acquainted with the description of this fish 

 already given, and to his stating it, to be new. If ever 

 there was a case of doctors differing, it is surely this ; and 

 out of the meshes of this entangled web, I see no other 

 extrication tlian by supposing Kroyer to look upon the 

 Osmerus HebrkUcus and the Argentina Silus, which I am 

 about to describe, as one and the same fish ; whilst 

 Nilsson, on the contrary, classes them as different sj)ecies. 

 The ArgeiitUia Silus, Nilss. (Sforre Silfcer-Fisk, i. e. 

 greater silver-fish, Sw. ; Gul-lax, or yellow salmon, Norw.), 

 is described by Nilsson as attaining a length of one and a 

 half to two feet, and as being peculiarly a salt-water 

 species, never ascending rivers. It resembles the Common 

 Smelt, hvii is always distinguishable by the dorsal fin 

 being placed before the ventrals. It frequents the 

 western coast of Norway, particularly to the south and 

 north of Bergen (about lat. 60°), where it lives, during the 

 summer, at a depth of eighty to one hundred fathoms, in 

 company with the Bergylt {Sehastes Norvegicus, Cuv.). 

 It is then occasionally caught on lines laid for that fish, 

 the bait being mostly a kind of mussel {Mi/tilus edulis), or 

 a bit of fish. Towards autumn it approaches the coast, or 



