

FOOD FISHES 51 



Another northern, right-eyed flat-fish, with great jaws and 

 powerful teeth, is the enormous Halibut. It is caught by long 

 lines off the shores of Iceland and the Faroe Islands, and is 

 the largest flat-fish known, measuring from two to six feet, 

 and sometimes even more than this. The fishermen from 

 Grimsby and Hull tie them up by their tails, and put them 

 into great salt-water wells at the bottom of their boats, and 

 so bring them alive to shore. ' It is a striking sight to see the 

 long rows of immense halibut and other fish laid out upon the 

 Grimsby pontoon when one of these vessels lands her catch 

 from the deep northern grounds.' 



Two other flat-fish belong to the south. They are the 

 Sole and Turbot ; the former a right-eyed, and the latter 

 a left-eyed fish. The turbot is larger than the sole and rounder 

 in shape ; it sometimes measures as much as three feet, 

 though its usual size is between one and two feet ; the sole 

 is never more than one and a half feet in length, and is not 

 often so large as this. They both live on ground consisting of 

 sand or gravel or other loose material in shallow waters (not 

 more than forty fathoms), and are taken by trawls in large 

 numbers in the Bristol Channel, the English Channel, and 

 the southern half of the North Sea. Cornishmen, and men 

 from Plymouth and Brixham, in the English Channel, and 

 from Lowestoft and Ramsgate, in the North Sea, take part 

 in the fishery. 



Skates and Rays, of which there are several kinds, in appear- 

 ance and mode of life resemble other flat-fishes such as the 

 plaice and turbot, but in structure they are altogether 

 different, and in this respect they are nearly allied to the 

 Sharks. They are found in all parts of the world and are taken 

 in great quantities round our coasts. 



SALMON. One of our most beautiful and valuable fish is the 

 salmon. On the top side it is bluish grey in colour, while 

 underneath it is silvery white. It is a large and powerful 

 creature sometimes four or five feet in length, and it preys 

 upon all other fish which are weaker than itself. 



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