ia?) THE SPRING HERRING FISHERIES OF NORWAY. 143 
ring” caught at Hishen, when brought to Stavanger, were found to be 
“ ray-herring,” and had both roe and milt, though not fully matured. 
When fishermen, as is often the case, tell you that the “ ray-herring” 
have no roe or milt, such expressions are caused by the circumstance 
that the roe and milt, as a.general rule, are but little developed, and do 
not strike the eye when the herring are opened. As far as Boeck’s 
description is concerned, it is not certain whether it is based on accurate 
personal observations. 
In saying that in the ‘“ray-herring” the roe and milt are not fully 
developed, we do not imply that these organs never reach maturity, 
but we only desire to convey the idea that these fish are not yet ready 
for spawning when they approach the coast. 
The size of the herring in the schools of ‘new herring” varies, accord- 
ing to the reports of the superintendents, from that of the Nordland 
great berring to a very small herring. According to the unanimous. 
testimony of the fishermen, the smallest specimens measured 6 to ii 
inches in length. Occasionally some were found which only measured 
5 inches. By far the greater number did not reach the size of spring 
herring, or were, at most, of the size of small spring herring. 
The “new herring,” and among them especially the “‘ray-herring,” 
were, during the season 186970, very lean and thin, with a compara- 
tively large head, and seemed (probably only on account of their lean- 
ness) to have coarser bones than the spring herring. Some of the “ray- 
herring” were excessively lean, and had on each side a row of dark 
stripes running upwards from the belly. 
The size and quality of the “new herring” varied greatly from time 
to time. At first it seemed ‘as if a continuous improvement could be 
seen in them, but later—about the middle of January—it is again 
reported that the herring were again small, and varied very much in 
size. The “new herring” were very different in different places. It 
is thus specially reported that near the northern fishing stations (par- 
ticularly near Floré) they were larger and of a better quality than farther 
south. This applied especially to those herring which were caught 
early in the season, and which by experienced fishermen were considered 
to be as large as the Nordland great herring. 
I have no data as to how the “new herring” compared with those 
smali herring which in 1869 began to appear among the schools of 
spring herring, aud I am therefore not prepared to pass an opinion on 
this subject. Their occurrence is probably connected with that of the 
“new herring, and possibly it resembled that of the ‘new herring.” 
A remarkable difference vas noticed in the time of arrival. As has 
already been remarked, the new herring kept near the coast till the 
end of January, and even far into February, 1870. During the follow- 
ing years it was very generally reported that “new herring” arrived 
during the spring-herring fisheries, and it seems as if no distinction 
was made between them and the small herring. Some of the “new 
, 
