MERLANGUS. 207 



der the tip of the underlip is one short stump-like 

 cirrus. The caudal fin is broad and rounded at 

 the extremity. Teeth fine, both in the throat and 

 jaws ; white, small and plump tongue ; the lateral 

 line w r aving upward. Its color varies at differ- 

 ent seasons of the year, from a rich orange to a 

 light greenish yellow, shaded by a dark brown on 

 the back, and gradually becoming a light yellow 

 between the vent and gills. It varies in length, 

 from six inches to fifteen, and weighs from 

 a quarter to nearly two pounds, depending, of 

 course, on the age, sex and season. In the 

 north of Europe, admitting this to be the fish, 

 which cannot at present be doubted, they have 

 been occasionally known to exceed eight pounds. 

 The spawning season appears to be in February, 

 in this climate ; about the last of May they begin 

 to take the hook. From that period till the last of 

 October, they are in the greatest perfection, and 

 in the greatest abundance also. 



Although Dr Mitchell furnishes a catalogue of 

 six varieties of the tom-cod, (" gadus tomcodus ; 

 G. tomcodus fuscus ; G. tomcodus luteus ; G. tom- 

 codus luteo-pallidus ; G. tomcodus pluinosus ; and 

 G. tomcodus mixtus,) we are fully convinced, after 

 a series of critical observations, that these are all 

 imaginary distinctions. 



In Massachusetts, the first species is only famil- 



