530 ON THE PRICE OF FISH. 



STURGEON. There is a foolish notion that this fish where- 

 ever caught was the property of the crown, a res fisci, like 

 Juvenal's turbot. It is plain however from my accounts that 

 salt sturgeon, and occasionally fresh, were frequent and, to 

 judge from the price, highly estimated articles of diet. 



Salt sturgeon in the early period by the barrel is often nearly 

 double the price of salt salmon. But in 1404 it exceeds it 

 only by a little. In 1405 it is 56^. $d. at Writtle; in 1406, 

 51 s. lod. at Salisbury ; in 1418, 53.$-. lod. at Cambridge ; in 1523, 

 48.$-. at the same place ; in 1444, 50,$-. at Writtle ; in 1445, 6^s. at 

 Norwich. But in 1489, between which date and that given 

 just above no entry occurs, it is only 2,os. Sd. ; in 1491, zos. ; in 

 1494, 23^. 4d., 35^., and 38*. nd. ; in 1499, 33* 4^- Jt is 

 22,s. 4\d. in 1501, zjs. 4d. in 1502, 36^. 8d. in 1520; but gets 

 much dearer in 1521 and onwards, being bought by Sion in 

 1521 and 1522 at 41,$-., in 1524 at 42*., in 1525 at 73.$-. 4^., in 

 1526 at 43^. 4^., in 1527 at 42^., and for Mary Tudor's house- 

 hold at 48^. 8d. In 1531 it is at 28jr. 5^., in 1532 at 35^. and 

 4is. 4d. After this date there is no entry. 



Sturgeon is also sold by the round, at 6d. in 1468, at is. 

 in 1490; in 1497 at \o\d. ; in 1502 at is. id.\ in 1507 at 

 lod. ; in 1508 at lod. ; in 1513 at is. \\d.\ and at is. 2d. in 

 1517. All these prices come from Cambridge. In 1538 the 

 round at Oxford is is. lod. In 1486 it is sold by the piece at 

 8d., and in 1488 at lod. These are also Cambridge purchases. 

 A single sturgeon is sold for 6s. Sd. in 1406, and another for 

 ys. 4d. in 1449, and at u. in 1528, unless the latter entry 

 means a round or piece. 



EELS. This fish was a favourite article of food with our 

 ancestors, both when fresh and when salted. It may be con- 

 venient to take the former kind first. 



Six hundred fresh eels are bought at Canterbury in 1404 at 

 40^. the hundred, probably the long hundred of 120. They 

 must have been of very large size, for in 1406 182 eels cost 

 only 2s. nd. at Salisbury. Again, in 1431 3200 eels are 

 bought at Castre at 6d. the hundred. In 1449 sixty eels cost 



