4'3 



CHAPTER XIII 



COD, HADDOCKS, WHITING, BREAM, CONGER, SHARKS, ETC 



ANY formal introduction of the reader to the Cod family is 

 surely needless, for they are old acquaintances. Round the 

 British Isles and in all northern seas these valuable food fish 

 abound where me depth is not too great, for their favourite 

 feeding grounds lie at a hundred and fifty fathoms and less 

 distance from the surface. Often, indeed, they come close in- 

 shore and may be caught from the beach. 



The Cod family is a large and important one, but for 

 the moment I will only deal with Gadus morrhua, that great 

 lump of a fish which is to be seen almost any day of the year, 

 displaying its noble proportions on the fishmonger's marble 

 slab. Naturalists, and indeed fishermen, record several varie- 

 ties. For instance, the fish of the Doggerbank are somewhat 

 longer in the head than the Scotch cod. Codlings are caught 

 of all kinds of colours (yellow, brown, speckled, red, &c.), which 

 may depend on the rocks and seaweed among which they 

 are living. I took one almost red and sent it to the late Dr. 

 Day, thinking I had discovered a marvel, but that eminent 

 ichthyologist informed me it was an ordinary cod. Off the Isle 

 of Man, however, the red cod are deemed the best. They 

 are often quite bright in colour, and their appearance may 

 after all not be altogether dependent on the nature of their 

 haunts, as they are found in company with brown fish. They 

 are caught weighing as much as 30 Ibs. sometimes more. 



