'7$ THE ^ERRINO. 



Genus LVI '^'he Herring *. 



JM ANY of the fiflies of this genus are well known. Some 

 of them, fuch as the herring and pilchard, conftitute a 

 larger portion of the food of the human race, than per«» 

 haps any fifli whatever. The herring filherj, which 

 forms fo confiderable a branch of commerce to the Kng- 

 liJI?, Dutch^ and other nations of the north of Europe^ is 

 a modern invention. Thofe myriads of fifh which an- 

 nually teem from the Artie Seas, and which are the ob- 

 jefts of this filliery, are fuppofed to have been altogether 

 unknown to the ancients ; for there is no word which 

 fecins to have been appropriated to this moll numerous 

 fpecies. 



The external characlers of the herring are fo well 

 known, that all defcription of them vi'ould be fuperfluous. 

 The grand winter refidenpe of this filli is within the artic 

 circle, where infe6l food aboiuids in a flill greater degree 

 than in warm climes. The particular food, however, of 

 thefe fillies has not yet been perfectly afcertaincd : The 

 inteftines are filled commonly with a blackilh mud, ap- 

 parently too much digtfted to difcover exa6lly its nature j 

 it is fuppofed to be a cruftaceous infeftf. 



From the j^rtic Seas, the herrings annually migrate 

 alpng the fiiores of America, as far as Carolina \ ; along 



thofq^ 



* Clupea Harengns, Lin. Syft, Herring, Will. 



•|- Oiiilcus IS'TaiiiHis, Lin, \ Catefby Qarolina, II. 32, 



