118 FISH. 



THE LING. 



Lola Molva, Cuvier. 

 Gadtts Liniiffius. 



The ling is so valuable a fish as to be hardly 

 second to the cod and coalfish; vast quantities 

 are caught all around our coast, especially Corn- 

 wall and the Scilly Isles. They are usually caught 

 with hand-lines and bulters, and with the excep- 

 tion of a few that are eaten fresh, are split from 

 head to tail, cleaned, salted in brine, washed and 

 dried ; but the demand is generally far less than 

 the quantity cured, and the poor fishermen are 

 but poorly paid for their toil. Spain is the chief 

 consumer, and formerly ling was so very valuable 

 an article of commerce, that an act of Parliament 

 for regulating the price of ling, cod, &c., was 

 passed at so early a time as the reign of Edward 

 the Third. The roes, which are large, are either 

 eaten or sold to fishermen to attract fish to their 

 nets. Oil is also extracted from the livers. The 

 principal fishing seasons are in Zetland from 

 May to August, and in Cornwall, January and 

 February ; they are found in deep water on rocky 



