

SKATES' EGGS AND YOUNG. 619 
the surface of the water, several of the males pursuing one 
female; and adhere so fast during coition, that the fishermen 
frequently draw up both together, though only one has taken 
the bait. The females begin to cast their purses in May, and 
continue doing so till September. In October they are ex- 
ceedingly poor and thin, but in November they begin to 
improve, and grow gradually better till May, when they are 
in the highest perfection. The males go sooner out of season 
than the females." 
We extend this quotation from Pennant to take in that 
part of the paragraph relating to the condition of the fish 
‘purposely, in order to call attention to the great waste of 
food on our New England coast. Here, to tell a person that 
a skate is good eating is about the same as to tell him that 
the horse is good eating. His reply will be, "you may eat 
it if you wish but I would rather have something else," 
and yet the skate and the horse are good wholesome food, 
which we should probably enjoy after we got used to it. In 
many parts of Great Britain and France, to say nothing of 
China, skates of a tender age, i.e., about half grown, hen 
they are called “mzids,” and also many sharks are consid- 
ered good and wholesome food, and are regularly sold in 
the markets. Our Celestial friends on the Pacific coast have 
brought skates and sharks into demand in that region, and in 
time we shall have the benefit of their custom here, when 
skates and sharks will be caught for other purposes than the 
making of "pure Cod liver oil;" but until the Celestial ele- 
ment predominates over the Celtic, salt-cod and herrings . 
will hold sway over the poor ee now condemned to 
die for their livers sake alone. 
Another clause in the quotation from Pennant leads us to 
‘say a word or two, before turning again to our skates’ eggs. 
` The male skates and sharks: fi appendages to the ven- 
‘tral fins which have been called claspers, from their supposed 
‘use in the act of d inne ‘appendages ‘are in reality 
‘the intromittent organs of: thé: male; and what were called 
