THE WHITE-FISH. 291 



rising to the fly, and caring little for any bait ; but it de- 

 mands more than a mere passing notice, on account 

 of its delicious flavour, its importance as an article of 

 food, and its commercial value, in a trade the importance 

 of which can only be estimated by a perusal of the 

 official returns. That for 1860, for instance, gives 50,000/. 

 sterling as the value of the "White-fish alone, which passed 

 through the Customs for exportation from a few fishing 

 stations on Detroit river and Lake Erie, to say nothing 

 of the enormous quantity consumed in the country, to 

 which I shall refer presently. 



The White-fish, which is peculiar to North America, 

 is of a pure bright pearly hue, without spot or mark, the 

 upper part of the back only, being of a slightly darker 

 tinge. It is in form and general outline very like a 

 grilse, only that the snout is more obtuse. Its ordinary 

 weight is from two to four pounds ; but in some of the 

 more northern lakes, in the colder water of which it seems 

 to thrive better, five and even eight pounds is not an 

 uncommon weight. 



It is not only gregarious, but swims in immense 

 shoals, and is strictly speaking a lake fish. It sometimes 

 enters the rivers in autumn, generally in October, for the 

 purpose of spawning, but perhaps more frequently deposits 

 its ova on the gravelly shallows of the lakes, in either case 

 immediately afterwards returning to the deep water. 



u2 



