152 REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. [26] 
rapidly, just as has been the case with us during the last few years. 
According to Winther the new herring simply take the places occupied 
by the former herring, and their rapid growth is owing to the favorable 
conditions under which they live. This does not altogether apply to 
our “new herring,” as they arrived in our coast waters much sooner 
than the spring herring, which, according to Sars, indicates that they 
lived nearer the coast than the great masses of spring herring, most of 
which had, at that time, already left our coasts. Even our present 
spring herring come much earlier than the former ones. 
The important question, therefore, arises: ‘‘ Where do the new herring 
come from, which during the season 1869~70 suddenly appeared in 
large masses?” It might be supposed that the smaller “new herring” 
were only the younger generations of spring herring, which, after the 
masses of old spring herring had disappeared, from some unknown 
cause occupied their spawning-places, and in a few years grew into new 
masses of old spring herring. This supposition is, to some extent, jus- 
tified, but it is doubtful whether its principle is applicable in all cases. 
In solving this question, a more thorough examination of the so-called 
‘“ray-herring,” which come to our coasts every year, might prove use- 
ful. In making a preliminary comparison between several specimens 
of the same size of the “ray herring” and those herring which, ac- 
cording to Sars, must be considered as fish in the earlier stages of the 
former spring herring, I could discover no difference except in the 
varying degree of leanness and fatness. 
Our present schools of spring herring are composed of ‘‘new herring” 
and of remnants of the former masses of spring herring. These were 
mixed with quite a large number of small herring. If these small her- 
ring bear more of the character of the ‘‘new herring,” it will come to 
almost the same thing to say that our present herring are descended 
from the “‘new herring,” or from small herring mixed with the spring 
herring. 
It has already been mentioned that our present spring herring have 
gone through further stages of development. 
After the new herring had developed in the manner above described, 
the present spring herring may be said to have begun their existence 
as such; but still they did not come up to the old spring herring in 
size or maturity, and moreover they only occurred in small numbers. 
As regards their size, it still varied somewhat, like that of the “new 
herring ;” and it must also be taken into consideration that they were 
still mixed with remnants of the former masses of spring herring. 
During the last few years the herring have become larger and of a 
more even size; but even the year before last they are said to have been 
smaller than the old spring herring. From all the reports, it appears 
that this year the herring which arrived first were exceptionally large 
and of even size. I measured numerous herring caught in the seines. 
The smallest measured about 27 centimeters in length, large specimens 
