458 Fishes. 



medium, annually amounted to the sum of forty-nine 

 thousand five hundred and thirty-two pounds. The 

 above was the state of the fishing several years ago ; at 

 present it is still more extensive, the average annual 

 produce of the Cornish fisheries amounting to about 

 twenty-one thousand hogsheads, which contain no less 

 than sixty millions of Pilchards. 



THE WHITEBAIT. (Clupea alba.) 



THIS beautiful little fish is a pure white, without spots 

 on either side. Immense quantities are caught from 

 the beginning of April to the end of September, in the 

 Thames; but they are so delicate as scarcely to bear 

 carriage, and are therefore thought best when eaten as 

 near as possible to the place where they were taken ; 

 and hence the custom of having Whitebait dinners at 

 the taverns at Greenwich and Blackwall. It was long 

 supposed that the Whitebait was the fry of the shad, 

 but it is now proved to be a distinct species. 



THE ANCHOVY. (Engraulis encrasicolus.) 



LIKE the herring and sprat, these fish leave the depths 

 of the open sea, in order to frequent the smooth and 

 shallow places of the coast, for the purpose of spawning. 

 The fishermen generally light a fire on the shore, for 

 the purpose of attracting the Anchovies, when they fish 



