GAD US. 
i'li that part; for without this operation the 
fish could not be kept under water in the 
well-boats, and brought fresh to market. The 
sounds when salted, are reckoned a delicacy, 
and are often brought in this state from New- 
foundland. A species of isinglass is also pre- 
pared from this part of the fish by the natives 
of Iceland. 
2 . Gadus JPglefinus, or haddock, is distin- 
guished from the rest of this genus by having 
; a forked tail, and the lower jaw longer than 
the upper: the colour of the body is silvery 
[ or white, with a dusky cast on the back : the 
; lateral line is black, and on each side at some 
f distance beyond the head, and above the 
P? c toral fins, is a moderately large, squarish 
! b ack spot: the tip of the lower jaw is Itir- 
; nisHed with a cirrus : the eyes are large ; the 
! scales small, round, and pretty closely attach- 
i ed to the skin. 
This species is a native of the northern 
! seas, where, like the cod, it assembles in pro- 
| digious shoals, visiting particular coasts at 
stated seasons ; the shoals are sometimes near 
sis: miles in length, and more than a mile in 
breadth. “ The grand shoal of haddocks,” 
says Mr. Pennant, “ comes periodical Is- 
on the Yorkshire coasts. It is remarkable 
that they appeared in 1766 on the 10th of De- 
i cetnber, and exactly on the same day 1767. 
i hese shoals extended from the shore near 
three miles in breadth, and in length from 
Flamborough Head to Tinmouth castle, and 
j perhaps much farther northwards. An id. -a 
| may be given of their numbers by the follovv- 
ing fact: three fishermen within the distance 
! of a mile from Scarborough harbour frequently 
j loaded their coble or boat with them twice a 
day, taking each time about a ton of fish: 
iwhen they put down their lines beyond the 
j distaucce of three miles from the shore they 
caught nothing but dog-fish, which shews how 
exactly these fish keep their limits. The 
i best were sold from eight pence to a shilling 
per score, and the poor had the smaller sort 
lac a penny, and sometimes a halfpenny per 
J score.” The haddock is taken in vast quan- 
t titles about Heligoland, and thence sent to 
| Hamburgh. In stormy weather this fish is 
said to imbed itself in the ooze at the bottom 
of the sea, none being taken in such weather; 
and those which are taken afterwards are ob- 
j served to be covered with mud on their backs. 
The haddock is, in general, of moderate 
size, measuring about eighteen inches or two 
feet in length: those which are most esteem- 
ed for the table weighing from two to four 
] pounds; but it sometimes arrives at the 
length of three feet, and the weight of fourteen 
pounds. Its food consists of small fishes, 
i worms, and sea-insects. It spawns in the 
j month of February. 
3. Gadus callarias, or dorse, is a somewhat 
j smaller species than the haddock, those which 
I are usually taken rarely exceeding the weight 
1 of two pounds. 
The head is smaller than that of the had- 
dock, and is marked by several spots, which 
in the summer are generally brown, and in 
J the winter black : the general colour of the 
fish is cinereous above, and white beneath, 
several brown. spots being scattered over the 
body, which, in the young fish, are often of an 
j orange-colour: the scales are small, thin, and 
| soft.: the upper jaw is longer than the lower, 
and is furnished with more rows of teeth: at 
(the tip of the lower jaw i6 a cirrus or beard. 
r l he dorse is a native of the northern seas, 
as well as of the Mediterranean and the Bal- 
tic. 1 1 is taken both by the line and the net, 
and is highly esteemed as an article of food. 
It lives, like most others of this genus, On the 
smaller fishes, and sea-insects, instances are 
adduced by authors in which this fish, like the 
haddock, has been found greatly to exceed 
the usual size, and to weigh seven, eight, ten, 
or even fourteen pounds. It spawns in the 
month of February. 
4. Gadus barbutus, or whiting-pout, ac- 
cording to Mr. Pennant, never grows to a 
large size, rarely exceeding a foot in length, 
and is distinguished from all others by its 
great depth ; one of the size above mentioned 
being near four inches deep in the broadest 
part : the back is very much arched, aud ca-' 
rinated : the scales larger than those of the 
cod-fish: the mouth small, and the head 
short .- ou each side the lower jaw are seven 
or eight punctures : the first dorsal fin is tri- 
angular, and terminates in a long fibre: the 
colour of the fins and tail are dusky or black- 
ish, and at tire bottom of the pectoral fine is 
a black spot : the body is white, but more 
obscure on the back than the belly, and 
tinged with yellow: the lateral line is .white, 
broad, and crooked. This fish is in high es- 
timation as a food, and is found m the Medi- 
terranean and northern seas. 
5. Gadus minutus, or poor, is a small spe- 
cies, seldom exceeding six or seven inches 
in length, and of a more slendei* form than 
any of the preceding kinds. It is found in 
the Baltic and the Mediterranean, as well as 
in some parts of the northern seas. Its ap- 
pearance in the Mediterranean, is considered 
by the fishermen as the precursor of the cod, 
and the haddock, of which it is supposed to 
indicate very plentiful shoals. It is reckoned a 
wholesome food, and is taken both by the line 
and net. It is supposed to feed chiefly on 
worms and sea-insects, and deposits its spawn 
among the stones and sea-plants towards the 
borders of the shore. 
6. Gadus merlangus, or whiting, with three 
dorsal fins, as in the preceding kinds, but with 
a beardless mouth. The whiting is, according 
to Mr. Pennant, the most delicate as well as 
the most wholesome of the genus, but does 
not grow to a large size, the usual length 
being about ten or twelve inches, and the 
largest scarcely exceeding that of twenty. 
It is a lish of an elegant make : the body is 
rather long, and covered with small, round 
silvery’ scales : the head and back are [of a 
pale brown, and the sides slightly streaked 
with yellow. This fish is an inhabitant of 
the Baltic, and the northern seas, and is found 
in some parts of the Mediterranean. Vast 
shoals appear in the British seas during the 
spring ; keeping at the distance of from about 
half a mile to that of three from the shore : 
they are caught in vast numbers by the line, 
ana afford excellent diversion : their food 
consists of small fishes, sea insects and worms: 
they are said to be particularly fond of sprats 
and" young herrings, with which the fisher- 
men generally bait for them, and in defect 
of these with pieces of fresh herring, one be- 
ing sufficient, when cut, for twenty baits. 
According to Dr. Bloch, the chief time of the 
whiting fishery in France is in the months of 
January and February, though in England 
and Holland it is practised at a much later 
period. It spawns in December aud January, 
4 B.2 
7 . Gadus CEErbonarius, or coal-fish, when full 
grown, is, in general, readily distinguished 
from its congeners by its very dark of black 
colour, though in this respect it sometimes! 
varies : it is of a moderately long and elegant 
shape, with a small head, sharpened snout, 
and lower jaw exceeding the upper in length : 
when full grown the head, dorsal fins, tail and 
upper parts of the body are of a dusky black, 
which gradually softens into a silvery tinge as 
it approaches the abdomen. It is an inha- 
bitant of the Baltic, the northern and Medi- 
terranean seas : it is common on the most of 
our rocky and deep coasts, but particularly 
on those of Scotland and the Orkneys, where, 
according to Mr. Pennant, it swarms, and 
where tire young or fry forms a great part 
of the support ol the poor. 
8. Gadus merluccius, or hake, with two* 
dorsal tins. The hake is of a considerably 
lengthened form: the head is rather large, 
broad and flat at the top, but compressed on 
the sides ; the opening of the mouth wide, 
and the jaws armed with two rows of long, 
sharped-pointed, curved teeth, intermixed 
alternately with smaller ones : the palate is 
also furnished with a row of teeth on each 
side ; the pectoral and ventral fins are of mo- 
derate size, and of a sharpened shape, and 
the tail is nearly even at the end ; the lateral 
line commences |)y several small warts be- 
yond the head, and is continued in a straight 
direction to the tail : the usual lengtii of the 
hake is from one to two feet, but it is some- 
times found of the length of three feet. 
'Phis fish is an inhabitant of the Mediterra- 
nean and northern seas, in both of which its 
fishery is very considerable : it is salted and 
dried in the manner of cod, haddock, &c. 
but is not considered as a delicate fish, either 
in its fresh or salted state, and is rarely ad- 
mitted to the tables of the rich and luxuri- 
ous : it forms however a very useful article 
of food for the lower orders in many parts 
both of our own and other countries/ It is 
found in vast abundance- on many of our 
coasts, as well as those of Ireland. We arc 
informed by Mr. Pennant that there was for- 
merly a vast stationary fishery of the hake ok 
the Nymph Bank, off the "coast of Water- 
ford, immense quantities appearing there 
twice a year ; the iirst shoal coming m June, 
during the mackrel season, and the other im 
September, at the beginning of the herring 
season, probably in pursuit of those fish : it 
was no unusual thing for six men with hook* 
and lines to take a thousand hake in one 
night, besides a considerable quantity of other 
fish. At present, as we are informed by Dr. 
Bloch, one of the greatest hake-fisheries is 
carried on about the coasts of Britanny, both 
by the hook and net. It is carried on chiefly 
by night, in boats properly manned for the 
purpose: the principal baits for such as are 
taken by the line are launces, sardines, ami 
other small fishes. 
9. Gadus molfa, or the ling, takes its 
name from its length, being corrupted from 
the word long: the body is very slender; 
the head flat. The usual size of the ling is 
from three to four feet, but is said to have 
been sometimes seen of the length of seven 
feet: in colour it varies, being sometimes of 
an olive hue on the sides and . back, and 
sometimes cinereous : the abdomen is white, 
as are also the ventral fins, and the dorsal and 
anal are edged with white ; tixe tail is marked 
