NORTH SEA FISHERIES 37 



water adjacent to the Faroe Isles, -great 

 quantities of beautiful light-coloured fish, 

 especially cod-fish, haddock, lemon soles, 

 and halibut. The plaice were particularly 

 good, being of great size ; but these have 

 since become almost extinct. Farther along 

 the ridge, which sinks a little to rise again 

 farther north, the trawlers about twenty 

 years ago opened up the Iceland banks, 

 where the predominant kinds were of the 

 cod-fish family, the haddock being especi- 

 ally fine and large, to be followed by plaice, 

 dabs, and vast shoals of herrings at certain 

 seasons. All the fish are much darker, the 

 plaice being almost black on the upper 

 side, denoting a' seabed of darker hue. 

 This fishing has constantly increased in 

 importance and no doubt will continue 

 to do so, for the herring fishery is by no 

 means fully exploited yet. To the north- 

 west of Iceland this high submerged land 

 is again of wide extent, and forms a shallow 

 sea between Iceland and Greenland. This 

 bed is at present unfished, but should, in 

 the near future, be properly explored ; for, 

 considering the seasonal increases of cod- 

 fish at Iceland, it is probably along this 



