244 CAPRICE OF THE HERRING. [CHAP. vi. 



by the particular animal examined including herring-roe, 

 young herrings, sprats, etc. ; but the sandeel seems to be its 

 favourite food. 



One of the wonders connected with the natural history of 

 the herring is the capricious nature of the fish. It is always 

 changing its habitat, and, according to vulgar belief, from the 

 most curious circumstances. I need not add to the necessary 

 length of this chapter by giving a great number of instances 

 of the capricious nature of the herring ; but I must cite a 

 few, in order to make my recapitulation of herring history as 

 complete as possible, and at the same time it is proper to 

 mention that superstition is brought to bear on this point. 

 The fishermen of St. Monance, in Fife, used to remove their 

 church-bell during the fishing season, as they affirmed that its 

 ringing scared away the shoals of herring from the bay ! It 

 has long been a favourite and popular idea that they were 

 driven away by the noise of gun-firing. The Swedes say that 

 the frequent firings of the British ships in the neighbourhood 

 of Gothenburg frightened the fish away from the place. In a 

 similar manner and with equal truth it was said that they 

 had been driven away from the Baltic by the firing of guns 

 at the battle of Copenhagen ! " Ordinary philosophy is never 

 satisfied," says Dr. M'Culloeh, " unless it can find a solution 

 for everything ; and it is satisfied for this reason with ima- 

 ginary ones." Thus in Long Island, one of the Hebrides, it 

 was asserted that the fish had been driven away by the kelp- 

 manufacture, some imaginary coincidence having been found 

 between their disappearance and the establishment of that 

 business. But the kelp fires did not drive them away from 

 other shores, which they frequent and abandon indifferently, 

 without regard to that work. A member of the House of 

 Commons, in a debate on a Tithe Bill in 1835, stated that a 

 clergyman, having obtained a living on the coast of Ireland, 

 signified his intention of taking the tithe of fish, which was, 



