THE DRAGONET— THE COD. Ill 



extraordinary has undoubtedly been given to this fish, as well as 

 to the torpedo, by the all-wise and beneficent Creator, as a means 

 of defence against enemies beyond comparison superior in 

 strength and agility. 



The second grand division by which Linnaeus distinguishes 

 fishes of the spinous kind, is the 



JUGULARES, 



Of which the general characteristic consists in the position of 

 the ventral before the pectoral fins ; it contains five genera, and 

 about thirty-five species. 



So far as is consistent with the brevity of our plan, we shall 

 particularize two of this order, — one the most conspicuous 

 by its beauty, and the other the most remarkable for its import- 

 ance and extensive utility. 



THE DRAGONET, 



Which is about ten or twelve inches long, with a large head, 

 and a body slender, round, and smooth, is one of the most beau- 

 tiful of the inhabitants of the deep. The colours of this fish are 

 amazingly resplendent, exhibiting a delightful variety of white, 

 blue, and yellow. The blue in particular is inconceivably beauti- 

 ful, and shines with all the lustre of the sapphire. The throat is 

 black, and the membranes of its fins are delicately thin. Pon- 

 topidan calls this species the flying-fish ; but whether it makes 

 use of its fins as the means of elevating itself in the air, is a cir- 

 cumstance which has not yet been ascertained. This fish is 

 found in all the different latitudes from Spitzbergen to the Medi- 

 terranean, and is not uncommon on the English coast. 



From this exhibition of brilliancy in a tribe of the finny race, 

 we shall now, as has been already hinted, attend to a display of 

 commercial utility existing in another of this numerous class. 



THE COD 



Is a most extensive genus, including a variety of well-known 

 and useful fishes ; and is so commonly seen in our markets, that 

 little need be said of it by way of description. It is short in pro- 

 portion to its bulk ; its colour cinerous on the back, and white 

 on the belly. There are, however, in this fish, many varieties, 

 in regard to colour as well as size ; but all are distinguished by 

 an unfurcated tail, three soft fins on the back, the ventral fins 

 slender and pointed, and a sort of small beard at the extremity 

 of the lower-jaw. 



This valuable fish is found only in the northern parts of the 

 world. The coasts of Cape Breton, Nova-Scotia, New-England, 

 and, above all, the banks of Newfoundland, are its piincipal 



