454 TRANSACTIONS OF THE 



ble, they always keep the same distance from the sun, and never 

 rest, and are always compelled to remain near the surface of the 

 sea, as their air-bladder is too fully developed and their fins too 

 broad to permit them to sink deep. "We can scarcely conceal our 

 amazement at the number of these fish, when we take into con- 

 sideration the thousands of millions that are yearly taken through- 

 out the world by fishermen, the tens of thousands of millions 

 destroyed by whales, and other marine monsters, that follow them 

 night and day throughout all their migi-ations. In Holland, 

 many years since, one hundred and sixty thousand persons were 

 engaged solely in taking them. In Yarmouth, England, sixty -two 

 thousand barrels are caught and cured annually. Eighty-three 

 years ago, four hundred and thirty thousand barrels were exported 

 from Norway, and seventy thousand barrels of herring oil from 

 Sweden J and yet, notwithstanding the untiring activity of these 

 numerous destructive causes, every ensuing year finds the abun- 

 dance undiminished, and perfectly inexhaustible, defying the com- 

 bined arts of men and the irrepressible voracity of all the ocean 

 tribes. 



The common Cod (Gadus Morrhua.) — I have failed to accom- 

 plish any good result with this fish in fresh water, as yet; still I 

 propose to continue the experiments until success attends my 

 efibrts. 



The cod is covered with loose, soft scales, and has soft ventral 

 fins; the air bladder is large, and teeth are arranged in unequal 

 rows. He is confined to cold climates, and found in prodigious 

 numbers in the northern parts of the globe, principally between 

 the latitudes of forty-five and sixty-six; those taken north or 

 south of these latitudes are inferior in quality and size. They 

 are never seen in the Mediterranean. The banks of Newfound- 

 land, Nova Scotia and New England abound with them; they are 

 also taken on the south and west coasts of Iceland, Norway, in 

 the Baltic, and off Scotland. They spawn on rocky ground, and 

 recover after it sooner than any known fish. The flesh of the 

 cod is white, rich, 'firm, and extremely nutritious. He possesses 

 the power of compressing his air bladder, and thus condensing 

 the air to such a degree that his specific gravity becomes much 

 heavier than water, and he sinks rapidly; when he desires to rise, 



