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as edibles, but it has been recently discovered 

 that they prey upon herrings, sprats, fry, and 

 other dainties in their native element ; and as 

 these fish are very nutritious and fat in them- 

 selves, no doubt the nourishing channel in 

 them receives the substance of the food very 

 quickly, as it appears to be digested so rapidly 

 in their stomachs. He leaves the sea for the 

 fresh water rivers about January and February, 

 and continues to run up till September and 

 October, their spawning time, and some spawn 

 after this time ; they are often big with roe in 

 December and January, in the end of August 

 or the beginning of September ; when they are 

 in roe regularly, they cannot be in proper 

 season ; they get soft, their beautiful color and 

 spots vanish, and they do not appear like the 

 same fish. They travel up rivers as far as 

 they can possibly get, into lakes and their 

 feeders, and tributaries of large rivers, where 

 they take delight in the broad gravelly fords, 

 and strong deep running currents, which they 

 like to be as clear as crystal, to effect which 

 they will leap over weirs, waterfalls, "cuts," 

 "cruives," and "traps," when there is a flood 

 rushing over them, to the gTeat delight of the 



