290 WHITE FISHING. 



fry too are found on the shores and in the bays and 

 estuaries frequented by their parents ; and they do not 

 go to the deep water till late in the season. They 

 even appear to go farther up the rivers than the old 

 fish, for they may be taken in brackish water, with a 

 common trout-fly. 



The habits of the herring are thus a good deal like 

 those of the salmon ; and it is probable that there is a 

 great similarity in the whole oviparous fishes ; that they 

 all frequent the banks and shoals for the purpose of spawn- 

 ing, and go to some short distance in deeper water to 

 recover their strength. Those which are ovoviparous, 

 or bring forth their young hatched, are under no such 

 necessity ; though they follow the others, to feed upon 

 them and their spawn or fry ; and probably require the 

 influence of the air and heat of the shallow water to 

 perfect the internal hatching of their eggs. 



It has not been ascertained whether any of these fish 

 spawn every year; but there are some facts which 

 would lead to the conclusion that they do not. The 

 white-fishing, on the east coast of Scotland, which is 

 principally carried on for the common COD, (morhua 

 vulgaris,) and the HADDOCK, (morhua ceglijinus,) used 

 to be, in a great measure, suspended during the spring, 

 when the fish had spawned ; but, in time, the fishermen 

 found out, that when the fish were neither plentiful nor 

 good upon the shallow banks, they had only to be a 

 little more adventurous, and go into the deep water, 

 in order to be successful all the year round. Now the 

 fish found in the deep water cannot be those which 

 have just spawned, for they are fat and firm, and have 

 young milts and roes in them; and hence, there is 



