.458 Fishes. 
medium, annually amounted to the sum of forty-nine 
thousand five hundred and thirty -two pounds. The 
above was the state of the fishing several years ago ; at 
present it is still more extensive, the average annual 
produce of the Cornish fisheries amounting to about 
twenty-one thousand hogsheads, which contain no less 
than sixty millions of Pilchards. 
THE WHITEBAIT. (Clupea alba.) 
This beautiful little fish is a pure white, without spots 
on either side. Immense quantities are caught from 
the beginning of April to the end of September, in the 
Thames; but they are so delicate as scarcely to bear 
carriage, and are therefore thought best when eaten as 
near as possible to the place where they were taken ; 
and hence the custom of having Whitebait dinners at 
the taverns at Greenwich and Blackwall. It was long 
supposed that the Whitebait was the fry of the shad, 
but it is now proved to be a distinct species. 
THE ANCHOVY. (Engraulis encrasicolus.) 
Like the herring and sprat, these fish leave the depths 
of the open sea, in order to frequent the smooth and 
shallow places of the coast, for the purpose of spawning. 
The fishermen generally light a fire on the shore, for 
the purpose of attracting the Anchovies, when they fish 
