FOOD PRODUCTS OF THE SEA— FISHES. 321 



the female. Mr. Niklas (p. 17 of his " Treatise on Fish 

 Ponds ") confirms this, for he found 650,000 eggs in a 

 carp of Si- lbs. weight. 



The carp is much esteemed in France; it is seldom 

 obtained there heavier than 15 lbs., but on the Oder 

 they have been caught weighing 60 lbs. On draining 

 the marshes of that river, the carp were found in such 

 quantities that they employed them to fatten pigs. The 

 carp of the Saone in its fifth or sixth year is reported 

 to be excellent eating, while that of the Loire living in 

 clear and running waters is vile. 



The carp is said by Rondolet to have been brought 

 into Europe from Persia, and introduced into Italy by 

 LucuUus. It was introduced into England by Marechal 

 in 1514, in Denmark by Oke in 1560, and into France 

 it is mentioned as early as 1312. 



The tovacod (Gadus gracilis, Tilesius; Microgculus proxi- 

 mus. Guard.), serve the natives of Alaska for food, either 

 boiled or in the frozen state. They are preserved by 

 removing the intestines and drying in large bunches 

 strung on seal line, or by throwing them as they are 

 caught in seines, and preserved frozen, in great heaps 

 upon staging erected for the purpose. They are among 

 the most palatable of the many fish found in those seas, 

 and the number preserved is so great as to be almost 

 incalculable 



The most abundant of the fresh-water fish in Finland 

 is the lavaret argente (Coregonus lavaretus, Lin.), which 

 salted constitutes the principal food of the people in the 

 interior. The roe is sold largely at the markets of Hel- 

 singfors and other principal towns, and is considered a 

 food delicacy. 



Trout. — -The common trout {Salmo fario, Lin.), a well- 

 known fresh water fish of the rivers and lakes of Europe, 

 is an excellent fish for the table. They are finest in 

 flavour from the end of May till the end of September. 

 The variations of its tints and spots, from golden yellow 

 to crimson and greenish black, are almost infinite, and 

 depend in a great measure on the nature of its food, for 



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