PILCHARD. 
83 
of what may be vegetable substance; but animal forms have 
also been discovered, and on one occasion, in the middle of 
summer, when multitudes were caught in drift-nets, as they 
seen actively engaged in some pursuit close to the surface, 
an examination laid open the existence of vast numbers of a 
small shrimp-like creature, on which they had been feeding to 
repletion. On another occasion the stomachs of several were 
found to contain examples of the mackarel midge; and I have 
been informed that instances have been met with in which a 
Pilchard has taken the fisherman’s hook. The rarity of such 
an occurrence may perhaps be explained by supposing that 
tbe size of the hook or bait, rather than want of appetite in 
tbe fish, is a hindrance to its being more frequent. 
Ihe roe of some kinds of fish may also be the occasional 
food of the Pilchard; as I have been informed by a gentleman 
^bo resided several years at Croisic, in Prance, that it is the 
custom with French fishermen to scatter the salted roe of fish 
nbout their (drift) nets, in order to attract the Pilchard into 
them, and that he had seen this spawn in the stomachs of the 
thus caught. I have learned also from the British 
consvd at Brest that the use of the salted roe of fish is uni- 
versal on that coast for the purpose of attracting the Pilchard 
^nto the nets; and hundreds of tons of the roe of the Cod 
^nd Ling are imported into that country for this purpose. It 
scattered in the direction of the nets with a ladle, and the 
stomachs of the Pilchards are found to be filled with this food. 
There cannot be a doubt that the fishery for Pilchards is 
®f ancient date, and the regard in which the fish was held 
appears from its having been admitted into heraldry at a time 
^ cn coats-of-arms were of great importance; but I find no 
ttention of it in public documents before the age of Queen 
izabeth, when we find that the drying of Pilchards was 
uniong the monopolies granted by authority to some courtiers, 
c clamour against which so moved public indignation as to 
cause their surrender. But from this time the fishery is 
uown to have so far attracted the attention of the public as 
to become the subject of particular laws, the special enactments 
c which afford proof that the methods of conducting it were 
1 erent in some considerable degree from those practised at 
present, as well as the manner of preparing the fish for a 
