Varieties of Cod 289 



the habits of the southern Cod were far less regular 

 than those of the Cod of our own seas. They appear 

 to have no settled banks, feeding grounds where 

 one may always find them at stated seasons, but wander 

 in fairly large companies wherever food is plentiful. 



Before leaving this subject finally, I would like to 

 say that Rock Cod are not confined, as are the grey 

 variety, to temperate and cold waters. I have caught 

 them in so torrid a climate as that of the Gulf of 

 Mexico at a depth of seventy fathoms. But I suppose 

 that the rule of low temperature at certain depths, 

 making fish who affect those depths almost world-wide 

 in their habitat, will apply to Cod, even though he 

 is not, I should say, ever found at a greater depth 

 than a hundred fathoms. That, however, is quite 

 deep enough for the standard temperature (about 31° 

 F.) of the deep sea. 



A very interesting little member of the Cod family, 

 well-known to all of us, is the Whiting. It is caught 

 in great quantities round our coasts and off the shores 

 of Holland. It is essentially a fish to be eaten fresh, 

 the delicacy and whiteness of its flesh being entirely 

 spoiled by any attempts to cure it. More than that, 

 much as it is prized on account of its delicacy of flavour 

 and appearance, it is not too much to say that no 

 one who has not tasted it within three hours of its 

 capture can have any idea how delicious it really is. 

 The same thing, of course, applies practically to all 

 fish, no animal food growing flavourless and stale so 

 quickly, but the probability is that of all the fish we 

 eat there are none which it is so imperatively necessary 

 to eat fresh if we would really have them in perfection 

 as the Whiting. It is a small fish, being rarely caught 

 alcove three pounds weight and averaging about a 

 pound. 



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