;. . .-,il CollectfcM

HARVARD UNIVERSITY

LIBRARY

OF THE

Museum of Comparative Zoology

APR 8 1929

NATURAL HISTORY

^-liM'va ^s!sC

1

FISHES

MASSACHUSETTS

EMBRACING A PRACTICAL ESSAY

ANGLING.

WITH FIFTY-FOUR WOOD ENGRAVINGS
BY JEROME V. C. SMITH; M.D.

SECOND EDITION.

BOSTON :
WILLIAM D. TICKNOR.

M D CCC XLIII.

Entered according to act of Congress, in the year 1833, by

Allen and Ticknor,
in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of Massachusetts.

I

The Library .,
Museum of Comparative Zoology
^< Harvard University

HON. JOSIAH QUINCY,
£t)ts Volume

IS
RESPECTFULLY INSCRIBED

BY THE AUTHOR,

PREFACE.

In the course of several years residence on a small
island in Boston harbor, the author became interested
in the study of ichthyology. The daily opportunities
which the locality afforded of examining a large portion
of the species described in the following pages, resulted,
three years since, in a catalogue of the fishes of the
Northern States ; — but within a few months past, the
manuscript has been revised, and that part of it is now
presented, which more particularly relates to Massa-
chusetts.

There are many unfortunate errors, and repetitions,
which escaped notice, till it was too late to make the
corrections. The distance at which the writer resides
from the compositor, and the extreme difficulty, often-
times, of going to the city, against wind and tide, are
some, among many apologies, that might be offered
in extenuation of these vexatious deformities. A table
of errata, however, is inserted at the end.

With respect to the engravings, they are far short,
in many instances, of what was anticipated. Some of

VI

TREFACE.

them are beautifully and accurately executed ; but others
are miserable caricatures. The artist was young and
inexperienced, — and when he would have willingly
made a second drawing, the press could not be kept in
waiting. As a revised and enlarged edition, embracing
the natural history of all the fishes of the North, is con-
templated, the engravings in that will not only be more
numerous, but correctly delineated on copper.

No pretensions are made to originality ; the object
has been to collect and preserve such facts as are already
known in this interesting department of local Natural
History. The remarks and observations of other writers
have been freely introduced, wherever they were perti-
nent to the subject under consideration.

The collection of native fishes, from which the scien-
tific arrangement has been made, will probably be
deposited with the Boston Society of Natural History.
With a little exertion on the part of the members, it
might become a most valuable ichthyological cabinet.

Those gentlemen who have so promptly and kindly
forwarded specimens from various sections of the State,
will please accept our sincere thanks. To David
Eckley, Esq., of Boston, the author is particularly in-
debted. His exact knowledge of the habits and char-
acters of the aquatic tribes, and his truly philosophical
energy, demand the warmest gratitude. All that is
interesting to the practical angler, in the second part of
the volume, originated with that gentleman.

The services of Capt. J. P. Couthout, in procuring
and preserving the marine fishes of this coast, during
a period of several years, with reference to a correct
classification, also place the writer tinder lasting obliga-
tions.

PREFACE. Vll

To Solomon Lincoln, Esq., acknowledgments are
made in another place, for his valuable services.

A digest of the Fishery Laws, by the Hon. John
Pickering, to have been annexed, and to have con-
stituted part the third, was not seasonably completed,
and may therefore be expected hereafter, should the
present Essay meet the approbation of the public.

J. V. C. Smith.
Quarantine Ground,

Port of Boston, May, 1833.

THE

IMPORTANCE

THE FISHERIES

It was an opinion of Pliny, " that nature's
great and wonderful power is more demonstrated
in the sea than on the land." This power is dis-
played in forms of exquisite beauty, and awful
grandeur. It is exhibited on the mountain wave,
and in the unexplored caverns of the deep. It
appears, in an eminent degree, among the myriads
of tribes which traverse the ocean with a veloci-
ty far surpassing that produced by human power,
equalling almost that of the tenants of the air.
Science has not so far penetrated this field of
agreeable research, as to induce us to suppose,
that we have anything like a complete history
of the watery tribes. We have indeed new
1

2 THE IMPORTANCE OF

names, but with their increase, we have not a
corresponding knowledge of the habits and char-
acter of the marine inhabitants. Linnaeus has
given names to upwards of four hundred species ;
yet it is probable that the recesses of the fathom-
less sea contain a great variety of tribes never
seen by man. Imagination has frequently been
busy in tenanting these unexplored regions with
unreal creations, and superstition has exercised
her inventive faculties to impose a belief in their
existence, on credulous and inexperienced minds.

It would be an agreeable employment to enter
into a detail of the interesting facts connected
with this branch of Natural History. It would
afford a rich gratification to the inquiring mind,
to discover the singular adaptation to its state of
existence, which is to be found in this class of
animated nature, and to witness the order and
beauty which here, as well as elsewhere, is
stamped upon the works of the Almighty.

The object, however, in this introductory part
of the following work, is rather more of a prac-
tical nature, than an examination of the history
of the marine tribes ; rather to exhibit the im-
portance of the fisheries as a matter of sound
political economy, than to enter upon the sub-
ject with the enthusiasm which would be felt
alone by the man of science, — to show how

THE FISHERIES. 3

much individuals and even nations may, from in-
considerable sources, derive comfort, strength and
power.

To increase the physical and moral power of a
nation, to the greatest possible extent, regard
must be had to the proper adaptation of the
means to produce desired results, under every
variety of circumstances. Education must, in
some measure, be adapted to the genius of the
people, in order to give the greatest efficacy to
their institutions. Even forms of religion must
be shaped to correspond with the prevailing dis-
positions, habits and taste. A grave, sober peo-
ple will prefer great simplicity in their forms 6f
worship, and others, whose local circumstances
place them more under the dominion of the im-
agination, will avoid whatever appears to them
cold and austere, and seek to elevate their feel-
ings and indulge their taste by more showy and
imposing observances. So, also, in relation to the
ordinary pursuits of life, employments which in
some nations tend most to promote general pros-
perity, in others are found not to be adapted to
their habits or ♦circumstances.

It will often occur also, in a country like ours,
full of resources — putting forth its strength in
every variety of form, where under favorable
auspices, any individual with common skill and

4 THE IMPORTANCE OF

prudence, if he but throws himself upon the cur-
rent, will be sure of being borne on to prosperous
results, — that those pursuits which can be turned
to the quickest account in building up fortunes,
are followed to an unreasonable extent, and that
the result, under a change of circumstances, is
frequent distress and disappointment.

The avidity with which the Spanish adventur-
ers rushed into the pursuit of the glittering trea-
sures of South America, absorbed all inclination
to cultivate those practical arts, upon which ex-
perience shows, that the prosperity of a nation
mainly depends ; and its operation was to weaken
and undermine the very foundations of the
strength and glory of the Spanish monarchy.

A prevalent desire among a people to gather
riches too fast, and to swell their fortunes under
the influence of a feverish excitement, by means
ill adapted to employ all the powers whose exer-
cise contributes to ultimate and permanent good,
is frequently cherished by an ignorance of the
true principles of a wise political economy. We
should not think it strange even in our own coun-
try, where so much has been done, and is now
being done, to ascertain the mutual connexion and
dependence of the arts of life, and their bearing
on general interests. We should not think it
strange if the importance of some of the humbler

THE FISHERIES. 5

and less attractive pursuits should be overlooked
or undervalued.

It is for these reasons, that we have been in-
duced to comply with a request to offer some
remarks on the history, nature, extent and im-
portance of the Fisheries.

In the language of an early historian of Vir-
ginia,* " therefore, honorable and worthy coun-
trymen, let not the meanness of the word fish
distaste you, for it will afford as good gold as the
mines of Guiana or Potosi, with less hazard and
charge, and more certainty and facility."

Sir Henry Wotton remarked of fishing, that
it was " a rest to the mind, a cheerer of his
spirits, a diverter of sadness, a calmer of unquiet
thoughts, a moderator of passions, a procurer of
contentedness ; and that it begat habits of peace
and patience."

" The Romans, in the height of their glory,"
says the celebrated Walton, " made fish the mis-
tress of all their entertainments," of which the
value and importance are confirmed not only by
their historians, but by their essayists and bards.

It is not for us, however, to speak of the de-
licious entertainments which may be provided
from the treasures of the deep ; we shall remark

* Smith.

6 THE IMPORTANCE OF

on them with the more useful design of fostering
the fisheries as a branch of industry, as wise
economy for a state or nation like our own.

The first knowledge we have of the fisheries on
the American coasts, was in the year 1504, when
vessels from Biscay, Bretagne and Normandy,
were employed in the cod fishery, on the coasts
of Newfoundland. In 1517, the French, Spanish
and Portuguese had vessels engaged in this fish-
ery. England had then one ship employed in
this lucrative trade. Prince was in error when he
dated the commencement of the English fishing
trade in 1560, because in 1548, an act was passed
by Parliament, prohibiting the admirals and others
from making exactions in money or fish, from
English fishermen, going on the service of fishing
at Newfoundland. This was the first act of par-
liament which had any relation to this country ;
and it indicates the sagacity of the English states-
men, in protecting a trade which has ever since
been of great value to their nation.

In 1578, England employed fifteen vessels in
the trade, France one hundred and fifty, Spain one
hundred, and Portugal fifty. In 1615, the num-
ber of British vessels had increased to two hun-
dred and fifty, and those of other nations to four
hundred.

It is an interesting fact to us, that had it not

THE FISHERIES. 7

been for the treasures of the sea, the pilgrim fa-
thers of New England would have probably
perished by famine. The pious Brewster and his
associates lived for months almost entirely upon
fish, and his daily thanks were given, that he and
his associates could " suck of the abundance of the
seas, and of the treasures hid in the. sands." The
infant colony of Plymouth was nourished into
strength and power by the trade of fishing. It
was, for a long series of years, one of the princi-
pal sources from whence they derived sustenance
for themselves, and articles of traffic, in exchange
for which they obtained commodities necessary for
their comfort and protection. It is due to that
noble race of natives, who were afterwards almost
entirely swept from New England by pestilence
and war, here to state, that to them were our fa-
thers indebted for their first knowledge of the man-
ner of taking fish, as well as of the rudiments of
Indian agriculture.

It is a singular and an interesting fact, that our
beautiful system of free schools took its rise in
Plymouth Colony, from the fisheries. The sub-
ject was commenced in 1663, in the Colony Court,
by the following proposition: "It is proposed by
the court unto the several townships in this juris-
diction, as a thing that they ought to take into se-
rious consideration, that some course may be taken

THE IMPORTANCE OF

in every town, that there may be a school-master
set up to train up children to reading and writing."
In 1670, " the court did freely give and grant all
such profits as might or should accrue annually to
the colony, for fishing with nets or seines, at Cape
Cod, for mackerel, bass or herring, to be improv-
ed for and towards a free school, in some town of
this jurisdiction, for the training up of youth in
literature for the good and benefit of posterity,
provided a beginning be made within one year af-
ter said grant, &c." This school was immediate-
ly established at Plymouth, and was supported by
the proceeds of the Cape fishery, until 1677,
when they were distributed among several towns
for the same purpose. After the union of Massa-
chusetts with Plymouth, in 1692, this fishery be-
came free.*

Many of the towns in the colony of Massachu-
setts began at an early date to cultivate their river
fisheries. Wears were erected upon the rivers in
Watertown and Roxbury, as early as 1631. In
1641, we learn from Winthrop, that 300,000 dry
fish were sent to market.

The English commenced the whale fishery at a
very early period. Before the American Revolu-
tion, it had grown into an important branch of
trade, then considered of great value to the na-
* Deane's History of Scituate.

THE FISHERIES. 9

tion ; yet the whole amount of tonnage employed
did not equal that of the port of New Bedford at
the present time. The enterprising Hollanders,
however, surpassed the English in this trade, and
during nine years preceding the year 1778, their
ships bore to those of Great Britain the proportion
of two to one.

Previously to the American Revolution, the cod
fishery of Massachusetts employed 28,000 tons of
shipping, and four thousand seamen. The annual
value of their industry and enterprise was about
$1,000,000.

In 1775, Great Britain deeming the various fish-
eries of essential importance to the colonies, and
like an unnatural parent, desirous of enforcing
obedience by arbitrary and oppressive measures
at the instigation of Lord North, passed the ob-
noxious act, prohibiting the colonies the exercises
of the right of fishery on the banks of Newfound-
land. This unwise act of arbitrary power drew
forth the powerful invectives of Fox and Burke,
and sixteen peers regarded it with so much dis-
pleasure as to enter their protest against the pas-
sage of the bill. It was in a debate preceding the
passage of the act, that in allusion to the enter-
prise of the Americans in the whale fishery, the
eloquent Burke said —

" While we follow them among the tumbling

10 THE IMPORTANCE OF

mountains of ice, and behold them penetrating
into the deepest frozen recesses of Hudson's and
Davis's Straits, while we are looking for them be-
neath the Arctic circle, we hear that they have
pierced into the opposite region of polar cold,
that they are at the Antipodes, and engaged under
the frozen serpent of the south. Faulkland isl-
and, which seemed too remote and romantic an
object for the grasp of national ambition, is but a
stage and resting place for their victorious indus-
try. Nor is the equinoctial heat more discourag-
ing to them, than the accumulated winter of both
poles. We know that while some of them draw
the line or strike the harpoon on the coast of Af-
rica, others run the longitude, and pursue their
gigantic game on the coast of Brazil. No sea, but
what is vexed with their fisheries. Neither the
perseverance of Holland, nor the activity of
France, nor the dexterous and firm sagacity of
English enterprise, have carried their most perilous
mode of hardy industry to the extent to which it
has been pursued by this recent people, who are
still in the gristle, and not hardened into man-
hood."

The war of our independence, however, gave a
new direction to the " victorious industry" which
was carried to an extent which far surpassed " the
sagacity of English enterprise," whether in the

THE FISHERIES. . H

cabinet or the field. It was the spirit of men
trained to such daring pursuits, accustomed to
perilous undertakings, which, in the course of
eight years, obtained from Great Britain a recog-
nition " as a right " of that which had been with-
held, at the commencement of that period, as a
privilege, to be dispensed at the pleasure of par-
liament.

The restoration of peace revived the fisheries of
this country. The state of Massachusetts, alive
to its true interests, and desirous of strengthening
this essential branch of national industry, made a
representation to Congress in 1790, asking some
encouragement in the form of bounty, on export-
ed fish. This was granted, and a few years after-
wards a bounty was allowed to vessels employed
in the business for a given length of time. This
gave a stimulus to the trade, and up to the period
when restrictions were placed upon our commerce,
it gradually increased in value and extent. In
1807, 71,000 tons of vessels were employed in
the cod fishery alone, and the average value of
exports from this country, of the productions of
the sea for that and the four preceding years, was
estimated at $3,000,000. From that time, until
the close of the last war, all our fisheries dimin-
ished. With the return of peace, they revived,
and the very next year 68,000 tons of vessels,

]2 THE IMPORTANCE OF

employing 10,000 fishermen, were again upon the
ocean, — thus exhibiting the sagacity and prompt-
ness with which the sons of New England avail
themselves of such circumstances as affect individ-
ual or public prosperity.

This branch of the fisheries has been pursued
since that period, with a success somewhat change-
able, but within the few last years, apparently
more sure and increasing.

The enterprise with which our fisheries have
been prosecuted has attracted the attention and
excited the jealousy of our colonial neighbors. A
late writer* upon the British dominions of North
America, in remarking on their fisheries says,
n By encouraging bounties to secure the adven-
turer against the serious loss consequent upon an
unsuccessful voyage, the number of vessels would
soon be considerably increased, and this important
branch of trade so effectually carried on by the
hardy inhabitants, as to compete in some degree
at least, if not rival, that of our American neigh-
bors, who are now almost in the exclusive enjoy-
ment of it, and carry on their enterprising fisheries
at the very mouths of our bays and harbors."

The inhabitants of the British dominions pos-
sess very great facilities for the promotion of this

* Bouchette.

THE FISHERIES. 13

trade. They have a country filled with a heavy
growth of the most valuable timber for the build-
ing of vessels, and they derive no inconsiderable
advantages from their proximity to the fishing
grounds. They can, and frequently do, in some
districts, carry on their fisheries in open boats
of cheap construction, within a few miles from
shore. The bounty allowed by our government
to encourage the trade, being, in part, intended
as a drawback for duties paid on imported salt,
can scarcely be an adequate cause for the supe-
rior success of our fisheries over those of the
British, even on their own shores. The colonial
fishermen derive a similar encouragement from
the importation (free of duty) of the salt which
they consume. The form in which they receive
encouragement is different, but its effect is de-
signed to be the same. The secret of the suc-
cess of our fishermen lies in their greater activity
and perseverance. A late English traveller in
Nova Scotia, was surprised to find the bays swarm-
ing with Marblehead boats, before the Nova Sco-
tianshad moved in the business. Burke acknowl-
edged the superiority of the hardy fishermen of
New England, more than half a century since, a
superiority which they have ever since maintained,
and will continue to maintain unless our govern-
ment should withdraw the protection and reward

14 THE IMPORTANCE OF

which now in some measure give a stimulus to in-
creased exertion to extend this lucrative branch of
our commercial pursuits.

Another branch of our fisheries which has grown
up within a few years is deserving consideration,
as an object of great importance to the State and
nation, viz : — the Mackerel Fishery. This busi-
nes was, as before stated, pursued to some extent
in the early settlement of the country, but the
whole annual profit of the fishery of Cape Cod,
when its proceeds were appropriated for the sup-
port of a free grammar school, was but from £30
to £40 annually. This fishery included Macker-
el, bass, and herring. It appears from the histor-
ical collections, that mackerel were first taken in
any considerable quantities in seines by moonlight.
This method is supposed to have been first adopt-
ed by Mr Isaac Allerton and his associates, at
Nantasket, as early as 1626.* Fishing by torch-
light is common on the St Lawrence. The scene
as witnessed from the banks of that broad and
beautiful expanse of water, is described as almost
of a fairy nature. The flashing of the lights upon

* " 1671— John Prince and Nathaniel Bosworth, of Hull,
petition the General Court of Plymouth for liberty tq fish at
Cape Cod for Mackerel, they having discovered a method of
fishing with nets by moon-light." — Thacher's History of
Plymouth."

THE FISHERIES. 15

its glassy surface spread out before the spectator,
with its edges fringed by a dark mass of huge
forest tress, sweeping to the very brink of the riv-
er — with the song of the voyager floating over
the smooth and silent waters, may well fill the
mind with delightful emotions.

To show the superior success of our Mackerel
fishery over that of Nova Scotia, it is merely ne-
cessary to advert to a few facts in relation to the
mode and circumstances under which the colonial
fishery is carried on. In Nova Scotia, mackerel
are taken by seining with great facility. The Sur-
veyor General of Lower Canada states in his late
interesting work, that 1000 barrels have been ta-
ken in a seine at one draught. At the commence-
ment of the season, the fisherman obtains permis-
sion of the proprietor of the beach to erect his
hut and occupy a certain space for his boats and
nets, for which he pays, at the end of the season,
a certain part of the fish taken. The fishery is
usually held in shares, — the owner of the boat
and nets taking one part of the proceeds, and the
fishermen the remainder. Some of the proprietors
receive each 2000 barrels of mackerel annually for
the use of their fishing grounds. Notwithstanding
these facilities and advantages on the side of the
Nova Scotians, the fishermen of New England
have entered into the business with great spirit

16 THE IMPORTANCE OF

and zeal ; and it bids fair to become one of our
chief and most permanent sources of prosperity.
So rapid has been the increase of the business,
that the eagle-eyed friends of retrenchment can
scarcely keep pace with its progress, in order to
prune off any extravagant allowance which a pros-
perous year of fishing might bring to the Inspector
General.

In 1803, Massachusetts passed a law providing
for an inspection of fish. In the following year,
the number of barrels of mackerel packed in Mas-
sachusetts, was 8,079. The number gradually
increased until 1808, when after a temporary de-
clension, the business extended, and in 1811 the
number of barrels packed was upwards of 19,000.
The war almost entirely destroyed the business.
In 1815 it revived, and the returns of the next
year show that 16,000 barrels were packed. In
1820, the increase was so rapid that the number of
barrels packed amounted to 236,243. This was
before the separation of Maine. The number
packed in Massachusetts the subsequent year, was
111,009, — but in 1825 it was again increased to
an amount exceeding that of the whole state at the
time of the separation, and in 1831 there were
packed in this State 348,750 barrels ; and the
mere increase from the preceding year, amounted
to a greater number than were packed in the sev-

THE FISHERIES. 17

en years subsequent to the passage of the Inspec-
tion law.* The number of vessels employed in
1831 did not fall much short of 400, and the num-
ber of men employed probably exceeded 4000. If
we include those who are employed in building
the vessels, manufacturing the barrels, making or
importing the salt, packing the fish, transporting
them to market, and vending them, we can form
some opinion of the extent of the advantages of
this trade to the community. The probable value
of the proceeds of the mackerel fishery for 1831,
exceeded one million and a half of dollars.

There is no doubt but the fisheries of Massachu-
setts have derived great advantage from our In-
spection laws. Whatever plausibility there may
be in a specious theory, which is sometimes put
forth and urged with much ingenuity and zeal,
that these laws are a restriction upon trade, still
there is no doubt as to their great practical benefit,
both to purchaser and seller. The fishermen of
Massachusetts have acquired for their produce a
high character, under the operation of these laws,
which commands for them regular prices and cer-
tain sales. The public are protected, at the same
time, from imposition in purchasing an article with

* The returns for 1832 were not. completed when this
sketch was prepared. Owing to temporary causes, the
" catch" falls much short of that of the preceding year.

2

18 THE IMPORTANCE OF

which they are not familiarly acquainted, and

which they would not purchase at all, were it not

for the character stamped upon them by the laws

of the State. It is true that the laws have in

some instances been carelessly enforced, but they

give a remeJy to the injured — it is true also, that

there have been frequent attempts at vexatious

and almost farcical legislation on this subject, which

have been promptly rejected by the Legislature :

yet these attempts to interfere to an unnecessary

extent, with the occupation and business of citizens.

has sometimes created disgust against the laws,

and rendered the whole system odious to many.

The Whale fishery, at the present time, attracts

unusual attention, both in Europe and America.

It is a wild and romantic employment. It requires

patience, perseverance, intrepidity — it is full of

interest and excitement. We are glad to know

that the object of the chase affords a rich reward

to those who fear not a perpetual conflict with the

elements, and continually grapple with danger

in pursuing their game. "The congratulation

and enjoyment resulting from victory, are scarcely

to be equalled in any other human pursuit."

We have noticed the early history of this

fishery in our previous remarks. It is now

rapidly increasing. The number of barrels of

sperm oil which have been imported into the Uni-

THE FISHERIES. 19

ted States since the late war has not fallen short of
1 ,000,000 barrels. Nearly one third of the quanti-
ty now imported, is consumed in manufacturing es-
tablishments. The quantity of whale oil imported
has been about the same as of sperm. The num-
ber of ships employed in the whale fishery, the
past year, was upwards of 300. The number of
persons employed to navigate them exceeded
6000. It is well known, that these vessels are chief-
ly owned, built and manned in Massachusetts.
They are supposed to require to equip for sea,
6000 tons of iron hoops for casks, 18,000 bolts of
sail cloth, 36,000 barrels of flour, 30,000 barrels of
beef and pork, 6,000,000 staves for casks, besides
numerous other expensive articles of equipment
and provisions. They require annually about
700,000 pounds of sheathing copper.*

It is a fact highly honorable to the enterprising
men engaged in this hazardous, daring and roman-
tic employment, that they can compete so success-
fully with those of other nations, while they encour-
age their fishery by a protective duty and liberal
bounties. The protective duty of Great Britain is
nearly double our own.

There is probably no branch of business more
directly calculated, in all its ramifications, to enrich
a state, than this. It gives employment to me-

* Boston Courier.

20 THE IMPORTANCE OF

chanics and artizans of almost every description —
wherever it extends itself, it scatters opulence. In
peace, it is rearing up a hardy race of navigators,
who with souls steeled by unremitted action — al-
most naturalized to the element on which they
pursue their gigantic game — accustomed to buffet
the tempest and the storm on every ocean, will
not hesitate, in war, if it must come, to display
the same daring intrepidity, the same recklessness
of danger, the same love of country and of home,
in defending their dearest rights. It would be
gratifying to sketch, in detail, the animating scenes
which are presented in this employment, — to por-
tray the exciting contests by man for the mastery
over the monsters of the deep — and to describe
the skill and ingenuity by which victory is obtain-
ed — but the limits which we have prescribed to
ourselves will not permit us to continue the sub-
ject further.

The remaining fisheries of the Commonwealth,
as subjects of general interest, are in a great mea-
sure losing, and in some instances have lost their
importance. The beautiful salmon, which Isaac
Walton accounted the king offish, is a rare visitor
to our waters, although we find them occasionally
exhibited by those who cater for the public taste.

The statutes in relation to our interior fisheries,
including those of the Colonies of Massachusetts

THE FISHERIES. 21

and Plymouth, contain many provisions as singular
as they are absurd. In the almost endless variety
of detail, however, certain general principles have
been settled in a manner to prevent angry and
unprofitable litigation.

In relation to our sea-coast fisheries, the statutes
and general principles are highly important, and
new acts of legislation should be adopted with
great caution. Our citizens would regard with
extreme sensitiveness any enactments which might
tend to abridge, under the appearance of enlarg-
ing their privileges. Whatever may be the right,
our hardy and enterprising fishermen, for the
sake of an exclusive privilege of fishing on our
own shores, would scarcely wish to abstain from
carrying their successful industry into the mouths
of the bays and harbors of New Brunswick and
Nova Scotia.

In relation to the general subject, however, it
must be apparent, that the fisheries of this Com-
monwealth are of vital importance to its interests.
There are many views of it, showing the depend-
ance of other branches of manufactures and trade
on them, which cannot now be presented. The
direct advantages are numerous. Taking into
consideration the amount of capital invested in
them, they yield a fair income which is divided
among a large number of persons, contributing to

22 THE IMPORTANCE OF

the support of no inconsiderable portion of oar
population, who but for this employment, might
be left in destitute circumstances. Perhaps no
trade — no pursuit with the same amount of cap-
ital, employs so large number of our citizens, and
gives more encouraging impulses to enterprise and
exertion. The employment is not unfriendly to
the morals of those who engage in it. It has
been remarked, that every person on board a fish-
ing vessel, has an interest in common with his as-
sociates. Their reward depends upon their indus-
try and enterprise. Much caution is observed in
the selection of crews of fishing vessels, and it
often happens, that every individual is connected,
by blood and the strongest ties of friendship. They
are remarkable for their sobriety and good con-
duct, and they rank with the most skilful naviga-
tors.

The celebrated Talleyrand, in speaking of our
fishermen, said, " Excepting the whalers, fishing is
an idle employment, requiring neither courage nor
skill ; the fishermen do not venture more than two
leagues from the coast, — the fisheries do not fur-
nish a nursery for seamen, they have no attach-
ment to their homes, they are cosmopolites, and a
few codfish more or less determine their country."
These remarks only show how ignorant a learned
man may be of facts which fall under the observa-

THE FISHERIES. 23

tion of all who have any curiosity to examine the
subject.

Bouchette says, " The daring enterprise of the
fisherman is known on this side the ocean, as well
as the other — it would be idle to dwell upon the
boldness, the activity, the extreme collectedness
and presence of mind, that characterize that class
of navigators, who apparently naturalized to the
elements, buffet the heavy swell of the Atlantic,
in their frail fishing smacks and vessels, and seem
to laugh the ocean storms to scorn. "

It might be enough to quote one foreign writer
against another, to show the absurdity of the alle-
gations of the French diplomatist — but who that
has seen upon the shores of New England, beau-
tiful villages springing up under no operating
cause but the " silver drawn from the sea," filled
with seminaries for learning and temples for the
worship of God — abounding with all the means
for social improvement and intellectual culture — ■
the wharves laden with the rich productions of the
ocean — the harbor whitened by the canvas of
the enterprising fishermen, and does not know that
the declarations of Talleyrand are the very reverse
of the truth ! Who does not know, that when
war swept the barque of the fisherman from the
ocean, that he was among the foremost to enrol his
name under the flag of his country — and gallant-

24 THE IMPORTANCE OF

ly to stake his life upon a contest for what he con-
ceived duty to that country required ? Who does
not know, that the fishermen of New England,
under a Tucker, (himself a fisherman), and a
Hull, performed for their country the most brilliant
achievements, and displayed at the same time, all
the noble qualities of the citizen and the patriot ?

Massachusetts, with her intelligent population,
her advances in manufactures and the arts, — her
enterprising commerce and flourishing fisheries,
contains within herself, all the elements of strength
and power. A minute examination of the mutual
bearino- of all these interests, will show how im-
portant it is, that each should be sustained by the
protection of the others. The inhabitants of the
sea-board will exchange with those of the interior,
the products of the ocean and foreign climes, for
those of our native soil, with mutual advantage and
profit. The interior will naturally seek channels for
the conveyance of its surplus productions to the
sea-board, for the purposes of exchange, and thus
private interests, if not public sentiment, will in
obedience to the dictates of a wise and prudent
policy, open avenues which will at the same time
develope'the resources of the State — bind together
the various local interests — and quicken the cir-
culation of intelligence and good feelings.

Small though she is in territory, what State,

THE FISHERIES. 25

more than Massachusetts, possesses within herself
all that constitutes the moral and physical strength
of a Commonwealth ? Where is industry more
manfully displayed and better rewarded ? We think
no where on the face of the earth. It is for us
then to examine all the capacities of our ancient
Commonwealth — to study well all her interests,
— to procure for them all the protection of good
laws, — to overlook none of her important, nor in-
considerable branches of industry, and above all,
to take good precaution to observe the principles
and to obey the precepts of that noble generation
of men, who appropriated the proceeds of the
Cape Cod fishery to found our beautiful system of
free schools.*

* Some of the uses to which the productions of the sea may
be applied, aud which are not adverted to in the preceding
sketch, appear by the following extract from the Barnstable
Journal, of Feb. 7, 1833.

" Feeding Cattle on Fish. The cattle at Province-
town feed upon fish with apparently as good relish as upon
the best kinds ol fodder. It is said that some cows, kept there
several years, will, when grain and fish are placed before
them at the same time, prefer the latter, eating the whole of
the fish before they touch the grain. Like one of old, we
were rather incredulous on this subject, till we had the evi-
dence of ocular demonstration. We have seen the cows at
that place boldly enter the surf, in pursuit of the offals thiown
from the fish boats on the shore, and when obtained, masticate
and swallow every part except the hardest bones. A Pro-

26 THE IMPORTANCE OF THE FISHERIES.

vincetown cow will dissect the head of a cod with wonderful
celerity. She places one foot upon a part of it, and with her
teeth tears off the skin and gristly parts, and in a few mo-
ments nothing is left but the bones.

The inhabitants of Provincetown are not the only people
who feed their cattle upon fish. The nations of the Coroman-
del coast, as well as in the other parts of the East, practise
feeding their flocks and herds with fish. The celebrated tra-
veller, Ibn Batuta, who visited Zafar, the most easterly city
in Yemen, in the early part of the fourteenth century, says
that the inhabitants of that city carried on a great trade in
horses in India, and at that period fed their flocks and herds
with fish, a practice which he says, he had no where else ob-
served.

[Note. The preceding article has been obligingly furnish-
ed by Solomon Lincoln, Esq. of Hingharn, whose indus-
try and research entitles him to our warmest thanks.]

ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY

FISHES.

The naturalist, by his observations on the phe-
nomena of life, is irresistibly led to the conclusion,
that a progressive advancement towards the per-
fect organization of man, is discoverable in the
whole chain of inferior existences.

As it respects the time and order of the crea-
tion of animals, we are expressly informed, in the
book of Genesis, that on the fifth day after the
creation of the world, " God said, ' let the waters
bring forth abundantly, the moving creatures that
hath life, &£c.' " Moreover, the sacred chronicle
further says, that " God created great whales, and
every living creature that moveth, which the wa-
ters brought forth abundantly after their kind."
Man was created on the sixth — and the seventh
was the first Sabbath — a day of rest.

28 ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY

It is therefore implied, that man, being the last
in the series of organized beings, surpassed all that
had preceded him in the perfection of his organs,
— the elements of which were displayed in a
graduated scale of animal mechanism.

There is a beautiful simplicity discoverable in
the structure of purely aquatic beings, that
strengthens the declaration of the sacred historian,
that they were the first that were endowed with
life ; — and the accurate anatomist discovers, that
the machinery of organic life, commencing with
the single heart of fishes, becomes more and more
complex, as species advance towards the animal
perfectability of man.*

In Ichthyology, as in all other departments of
natural history, it was found necessary to establish
an orderly course of examination, in order to as-
certain the true characters of the almost endless
varieties of animals, which inhabit the ocean and
its tributary streams. It was discovered in the
earliest ages, in relation to the study of ichthyolo-

* A certain literary gentleman, in a romantic work on the
Deluge, supposes that in the old world, the atmospheric
temperature was much greater, than in this modern affair, in
which we live, and consequently terrestrial animals had such
an exaltation of the passions, that they were destroyed for
their crimes; but fishes, residing in a cooler element, were so
much better in their conduct, that they were exempted from
the otherwise terrible destruction of the primitive world.

OP PISHES. 29

gy, that nature had pursued an undeviating plan,
with regard to the shape of the body and the po-
sition of the limbs of all such animals as were
designed to exist in water. A further discovery
in connexion with this, that there was a peculiari-
ty in the structure of the gills of fishes, fitting
them for different localities, led the way to-
wards a systematic arrangement. To Linnaeus,
Artedi, Shaw, and lastly, the lamented Cuvier,
who improved upon their labors, modern science is
indebted for our limited knowledge of this inter-
esting pursuit.

Fishes are naturally divided into two great fam-
ilies, viz : the spinous and the cartilaginous. In
the first division, are included all that have a skel-
eton of bones, resembling, in some measure, the
compact frame-work of land animals. They have
articulations approaching, in structure, the joints of
quadrupeds, — and there is, moreover, a firmness
of body, in consequence of the peculiar arrange-
ment of the asseous textures, and the shortness of
the muscles, indicating their peaceable disposition ;
in fine, the spinous fishes have not that organiza-
tion which presupposes extraordinary speed.

On the other hand, cartilaginous fishes are so
constructed, that they can be distorted with impu-
nity. Their bones possess both elasticity and
flexibility. Their swallows (esophagus) as well

30 ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY

as digestive organs, are capable of supporting a
surprising distention, without subjecting the indi-
vidual to even a temporary inconvenience. In the
act of gorging their food, the jaws are thrown so
far apart, that with the organization of the spinous
fishes, the capsular ligaments would be torn from
the bones, and the blood-vessels rent from their
connexion with the heart. Such, indeed, is the
gristly elasticity of the skeleton of this second
natural division, that the bones are separated as
often as the stomach is called into vigorous action,
and resume their places again, without injuring, or
in fact, disturbing the functions of the vital or-
gans.*

These grand divisions are analogous to the two
great classes of land animals, the one of which is
carnivorous, and the other is sustained by the ve-
getable productions of the earth. Spinous fishes
may be compared, in general character, to the
graminivorous quadrupeds, being timid, not uni-
versally provided with weapons of defence, and
possessing, to a certain extent, social habits, and
are therefore rarely found alone. But the cartila-
ginous, like the carnivorous animals, are exceed-
ingly voracious ; — they pursue their living ali-

* The jaws of serpents are separated in a similar manner, in
swallowing food. The distortion of the Eoa Constrictor, in
the act of gorging, is truly horrible.

OF FISHES. 31

ment with untiring speed, and devour their help-
less victims, when practicable, at a single mouth-
ful.

It will be perceived, therefore, that this remark-
able difference in organization, adapts these two
families, to that peculiar condition of things, exist-
ing in the element in which they were designed to
live.

" Eat or be eaten," is the only law known to
the inhabitants of the ocean. Each individual,
therefore, under the instinctive influence of that
immutable ordinance, feeds luxuriously on its
nearest neighbor ; and, at last, from the insecurity
of its home, is preyed upon in its turn.

Another law, no less important and interesting
in its operation, explains that prolific attribute,
which is characteristic of this race of beings. Sus-
tained on food already animalized, its rapid assim-
ilation soon perfects the growth ; and were it not
for incessant slaughter throughout the seas, the
ocean could not contain its own. The putrid ex-
halations of the floating dead, if this eternal war-
fare for food were suspended, would corrupt the
atmosphere of the whole globe, and all life would
inevitably be sacrificed to the over-peopling of the
world of waters.*

* Most fishes seem to give a preference to living food: it
is only under the influence of extreme hunger, that they are

32 ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY

Before commencing a particular description of
the fishes, peculiar to the sea-board and interior of
this Commonwealth, which is the ultimate object
of this essay, it may, perhaps, contribute towards
the advancement of such as are desirous of under-
standing some of the first principles of the science
of ichthyology, to make the following preliminary
observations on the anatomy of this great and
truly diversified tribe of animals. Avoiding all
the jargon of technical language, a plain and con-
cise description of the most prominent physical
characteristics, is all that is contemplated.

willing to feed on putrid aliment. In this respect, they re-
semble the frogs, toads, serpents, and indeed, several families
of reptiles, that would starve, before they would voluntarily
swallow animal matter in a state of decomposition — or, in-
deed, deprived of motion. Frogs and serpents, as far as the
writer's observation extends, never dart upon insects or other
reptiles, unless they first perceive that they possess some
power of motion.

The toad, whose biography is given in some of the books
on natural history, in consequence of the loss of one eye, was
not only unable to strike the object regularly, when it darted
its tongue, as in former times, but it was also deceived in the
character of the object. At any rate, the poor toad became
melancholy, took less exercise than formerly — and, if the
above account is true, which there if? no reason to doubt, —
took less food too, — and being sick of the world, finally died of
a broken heart ! This is a fair specimen of a very clever
gentleman's sympathy for the inferior animals, which was ex-
ceedingly excited by his researches in natural history.

OF FISHES.

33

BONES AND ARTICULATIONS.

The skulls of fishes, more particularly the por-
tion including the brain, is the only compact part
of the skeleton. Bones without number seem to
penetrate the muscles, floating at one extremity
like the ribs of an umbrella. Next to the head,
the spine presents regularity and comparative so-
lidity. Joints, necessarily, are numerous, but dif-
fer essentially in structure from land animals.

SKELETON OF AN OSSEUS FISH.

Although serpents have spinal articulations, so
flexible that they can be tied into knots, without
injury to the spinal marrow, they do not possess
that freedom of motion which is so peculiar and
common to joints in the back-bone of fishes.
Each vertebra, entering into the composition of
the spine, instead of being locked into the next,
by hook-like processes of the bone, is excavated
at each end. Thus, when two are brought in
3

34 ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY

contact, there will be an oval or spherical space
between them, as the case may be, depending on
the kind of motion required at any particular
place. In this cavity is placed a strong sac, con-
taining a gelatinous fluid ; the bones move round
it, like a surveyor's compass with the ball and
socket joint. The sac is more or less convex,
according to the necessary mobility of the section
where it may be found. Near the tail, the organ
of locomotion in propelling the body forward,
they are nearly globular.

Towards the chest and head, where less motion
is requisite, the sacks assume the appearance of
slightly convex lenses. Being incompressible,
though yielding, and remarkably, withal, confined
to their places by strong elastic ligaments, both
symmetry and power are beautifully and effectual-
ly combined.*

* Between the joints of the spinal column of quadrupeds,
as well as man, there are pieces of what the books term in-
tervertebral substance, resembling in shape a common sun-
glass, but thicker in the centre. If it were not for the inter-
vention of this elastic stuff between every two bones of the
spine, which is built up of twenty-four bones, every time we
take a step, the meeting of the foot with the ground would
produce such a jar in the body, as to destroy the action of
many vessels, and perhaps break down the brain. Construct-
ed as it is, there is no jerk felt in the system — the weight of
the body is transmitted so easily, from bone to bone, through
these twenty-four cushions, that no sensation whatever is

OF FISHES. 35

MUSCLES;

That prodigious mass of flesh enveloping the
bones, is regularly destributed in a way that is
both conducive to the protection of the vital ap-
paratus, and to the best mode of exerting muscu-
lar power. Like the cordage of a ship, every

A DISSECTION OF THE MUSCLES OF THE JAWS, AND THE FIRST
TISSUE OF MUSCULAR FIBRES, UNDER THE SKIN.

felt. The fact of this intervertebral substance being elastic,
has been taken advantage of by soldiers, who have often en-
listed themselves under a recruiting officer at night, when,
after being on their feet all day, the weight of the body, by
pressing down the intervertebral pieces, had made them
shorter. Thus, the next morning, after lying in a recum-
bent posture, the pieces recover their former thickness, and
the individual is an inch or more taller than the night be-
fore, when his height was measured. There is scarcely a
person that is not an inch taller in the morn ng than at night,
provided he has been exercising much on his feet, through
the day. In old age, this substance looses its elasticity, and
hence aged people become crooked and unsteady in walking.
In fishes and serpents, no such change is ever effected by
age.

36 ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY

rope has its appropriate place ; but, owing to the
little obliquity of their direction, the muscles act
to very great disadvantage. If the bones were
provided with long projecting processes, as in the
bones of land animals, they would have retarded
the motion of the fish through the water ; it was
necessary, therefore, in the economy of their na-
tures, to sacrifice the mechanical advantage of nu-
merous levers, that facility might be afforded to
their easy movement in their destined element.
Those muscles which control the fins and jaws,
are short, well developed and strong in contraction :
those on the sides, take a winding direction, and
consequently cannot act in producing short curves.
The object to be attained, in this conformation,
was ample security of the viscera, with a sub-
stance that would give power to exert power.

CIRCULATION OF THE BLOOD.

A single heart, an organ containing only two
cavities, instead of four, as in mammalia ; circu-
lating cold blood, which in terrestrial animals is
warm, gives additional interest to the natural his-
tory of the beings under consideration ; in them,
the heart does not propel the vital fluid through
the system, — which presents another extraordi-
nary circumstance in their organization. The

OF FISHES,

37

SCHEME OF THE CIRCULATION OF THE BLOOD IN FISHES

A A. The gills, 'the fringes of which are the extreme
terminations of arteries.

B. The ventricle of the heart, or forcing pump, which
drives the blood into a single artery, that soon divides into
two principal branches, carrying the blood equally to the gills,
on each side of the head.

C. The oracle of the heart, or receiving organ, into which
the veins empty the blood which has been the round of cir-
culation. This contracts, and throws its contents into the
ventricle, and that, again, forces it onward into the gills.

D. The main artery of the heart, or branchial artery, anal-
ogous to the pulmonary artery of breathing animals.

E. Refers to the branchial veins, which carry the blood
that has been exposed to the action of the water, in the gills,
back into the body, and pours it into the great tube lying un-
der the back-bone.

F. This is the vessel into which all the renewed blood is
emptied — which is an artery, acting like the left side of
the heart in warm blooded animals ; when it contracts, or
pulsates, it throws its contents through all the small vessels
that branch from it, into and over every portion of the body.

heart exerts its muscular force in throwing gru-
raous blood, which has been the round of circula-
tion, to the gills, and no further. From these, it

38 ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY

is collected by numerous vessels, which ultimately
unite in one single artery, coursing its way down
the body, under the protection of the vertebral
column. This, unlike the vascular apparatus of
any species of warm-blooded creatures, takes up-
on itself the action of a heart, — propelling the
blood, by successive pulsations, to the remotest
parts of the body.

It is almost unnecessary to remark, that animals
breathing air, have a double heart; indeed man,
and not only man, but all animals that breathe at-
mospheric air, have two hearts, but for the sake
of economising the room — for the purpose of
packing the parts to the best advantage, the two
are united ; — hence they occupy less space than
would otherwise be the case, were they placed at
different parts of the body. One heart throws all
the blood, which has once been the round of circula-
tion, into the lungs; — here its office ceases.
The blood is collected from the lungs, where the
first heart left it, and gradually poured into the
other, or left heart, which forces the blood through
every artery in the body. Both hearts are forcing
pumps, and both have valves. The much ad-
mired invention of the ship-pump, with three
valves, is only an imitation, and a poor one too, of
the semilunar valves of the pulmonary artery.
Reptiles and fishes, having only one heart, the

OF FISHES. 39

heart of the gills, which is equivalent to the heart
of the lungs, in mammalia, are cold-blooded ani-
mals. On the contrary, those having two hearts,
are warm-blooded animals. A whale has no gills,
but lungs, and consequently breathes air, — and
therefore, necessarily has a double heart. Since
it has lungs, and a double heart, it also necessari-
ly, has warm blood ; and therefore, a whale, as
Dr Mitchell rightly declared, is not a fish. And
why ? because the fish is without lungs, has but a
single heart, and cannot breathe air alone, or wa-
ter alone, but a mixture of both.

GILLS.

In the economy of fishes, the gills fulfill the of-
fice of lungs ; — they are so constructed, that
there is a free exposure, in their fringes, of the
impure venous blood, to the direct action of the
water.

Deprive the water of its air, by an air-pump,
and it will no longer sustain aquatic life. The
simple act of soaking the fimbriae of the gills, in
this fluid, is not sufficient ; it is necessary to have
the water forcibly driven through them by an ac-
tion of the jaws.

If the operculum, or gill cover, be confined and
closed with a ligature, suffocation takes place im-

40 ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY

mediately. On the other hand, if the gills are
forcibly kept open, so that no reaction can be ef-
fected upon the column of water on which the
mouth is exerting a pressure, death will also
ensue.

Most of the lizards possess lungs, which are
long cylinders, extending through the whole ex-
tent of the body, but if their mouths be propped
open, they will assuredly die for want of air,
in a little time, as they necessarily breathe
through their nostrils. The frog respires precise-
ly in the same way — drawing the mouth full of
air, and when the pouch under the lower jaw is
thrust out with it, the reptile forces it into its
lungs, through a slit at the root of the tongue,
which is the glottis. Thus, the mouth of the
frog, toad, and all the lizards, is a bellows, to force
the air into the lungs. Breathing with them, is
an act of volition. This explanation will account
to the young reader, for the broad, flat heads of
this class of reptiles ; — in this respect, there is a
curious analogy between them and the action of
the jaws of fishes. The one is a forcing pump,
as in the fish, for forcing the water suddenly
through the fringes of the gills, — and the other,
a bellows for driving the atmospheric air into the
long slender lungs. The muscular force of the
sides and abdomen, soon presses it out ao-ain.

OF FISHES.

41

DIGESTIVE APPARATUS.

No contrivance could be more simple, and at
the same time more complete, than their digestive
apparatus ; the stomach varies in anatomical struc-
ture, according to the nature of the substances on
which the species are to subsist. Possessing but

STOMACH OF THE SALMON.

slight muscularity, the gastric juice, which is se-
creted in rapid abundance, soon dissolves the
bones and tissues of smaller animals, and converts
them into that condition, which fits them for being
assimilated to a living system.*

* Instances are without number, which might be cited, il-
lustrative of the active power of the gastric fluid of fishes-
Very recently, a master of a vessel informed the writer, that
he caught a shark, which the day before had bitten one of
his men in two, who was bathing, along-side, — but there was
nothing remaining in the stomach, but the tibia, some of the
bones of one foot, and the metallic eyes of some buttons.

42 ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY

AIR BLADDER.

Only such fishes as swim with facility, rising and
falling, as circumstances require, possess this cu-
rious and extraordinary organ. Flounders, and
indeed all the flat fish, together with many of the
eels, are without it ; — therefore, as scavengers of
the ocean, they generally remain at the bottom.
In common parlance, this air sac is called the sound.

These diagrams are representations of the different forms
which the sound or swimming bladders have, in different
families of fishes. The short threads at the extremities, are
air ducts which communicate with some organ that is sup-
posed to secrete the air, and through them it passes into
the sac.

In domestic economy, sounds become an article of
merchandise, —being sold in barrels, for food.
The physiology of this apparently simple bladder
of air, is not well understood. The fish undoubt-
edly secretes the air in it, and has, also, the pow-
er of allowing it to be diminished or increased in
quantity, unless taken by surprise.

OF FISHES

43

There are circumstances, in which fishes are
buoyed to the surface, in spite of their utmost exer-
tions, by the rarifaction of the air within the sound.
On George's Bank, the fishermen not unfre-
quently take a cod, that comes to the top of
the water with a heavy lead, before it is possible
to coil the line, owing to the protrusion and buoy-
ancy of the bladder, through the mouth.

PROTRUSION OF THE AIR BLADDER THROUGH THE MOUTH.

During exceedingly warm weather, fishes in
shoal water sometimes die from the bursting of the
sound, or by the air forcing it through the mouth.
If they were, on the approach of this trouble, to
plunge into colder water, the air would be sud-
denly condensed, and they would escape ; but,
unfortunately, they are apt to loiter in shoal coves,
for the worms and insects which the heat of the
sun brings into activity. Thus, in turn, they be-
come food for the very animals for which they
were searching.

44 ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY

TEETH.

Whilst some species of fish are distinguished
for the number and peculiarity of their teeth, oth-
ers are as remarkable for having none at all. In
those in which they are developed, they are cha-
racterized by being usually small, in proportion to
the bulk of the animal, sharp pointed, and calcu-
lated for retaining a hold of prey, — the articula-
tion of the jaws admitting of no side-way motion, as
in mastication. When teeth are found on the
margin of the jaws, they generally may be detect-
ed also in the fauces and throat, quite down into
the gullet. Sharks are without rivals, as it re-
spects the number and office of their teeth. Many
of them have six and seven rows, spear-pointed,
with cutting edges, like lancets, hooking inward
towards the throat. Each tooth has its muscles
for erecting or depressing it. There is nothing
analogous to this, in the whole range of natural
history. Their mouths are only humbly imitated
in common mouse-traps ; — the admission is easy,
but an exit is literally impossible.

Fishes that feed on shell-fish, as clams, oysters,
crabs, &tc, have no teeth in the gums, as they
would be soon broken in seizing such hard sub-
stances. But beyond, the palate and throat
are thickly studded with large bony knobs, re-
sembling the double teeth of man, beautifully

OF FISHES. 45

enamelled, with which the hardest covering of
such marine animals as they are able to get within
their grip, are readily crushed.

We have various specimens in our cabinet, of
this crushing apparatus, which are as difficult to
describe as they would be to represent in draw-
ings. The entire roof of the mouth, in some of
the heads which came from South America, is as
hard as the enamel of a molar tooth, yet so
rough, as to hold the morsel from sliding, till
ground into a proper condition by the opposing
jaw, which has no tongue connected with it.

EXTERNAL COVERINGS.

The scales, which constitute the coverings of most
of the edible fish, it has been thought, first suggest-
ed the idea of tiling or shingling edifices. Scales,
in the Levitical law, were the evidences of a clean,
or in other words, of an edible fish. The direct
influence of that conservatory regulation, in rela-
tion to this kind of food, is observable in the mar-
kets of all christian countries. Such as have
smooth skins, exude an oily secretion, that facili-
tates their movements, almost without friction.
The first class inhabit the neighborhood of rocky
shores, and require a coat of mail to prevent lacer-
ations of their bodies ; the second, burrow in filth,
and steal unexpectedly upon their unsuspecting
prey.

46 ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY

MOTION AND USE OF FINS.

By these appendages, equivalent to arms and
feet, the fish performs a variety of motions. The
propelling instrument, the exclusive organ of pow-
erful movements, is the candal fluke or tail-fin,
which operates on the water precisely like a single
oar, in sculling a boat. Those on the sides are
only serviceable in balancing, wheeling round, and
in making a sudden stop. That upon the back
sustains a very interesting office, being, in fact, a
Jceel, which, on boats, is placed on the under side.
Had the keel of a fish been on the abdomen, in-
stead of the back, it would have destroyed its abil-
ity for feeding on the bottom ; moreover, there
would have been great danger of grounding in
shoal water. Nature, contemplating these objec-
tions, wisely placed this important appendage, by
which the body is kept upright, on the back, out
of the way, as well as out of danger.*

* It would be worth the while to ascertain whether Dr
Bushnell, the inventor and only successful navigator of the
sub-marine boar, which was constructed for attaching kegs of
powder to the bottom of British ships, during the Revolution,
had the keel on the upper side. As his first object was to
sink under water, there would be circumstances in which the
under-side keel would fasten the boat in the mud, particularly
if he were scudding before a whale, who threatened to swal-
low the whole concern, if he did not succeed in reaching a
place too shoal for the pursuing enemy.

OF PISHES. 47

ORGANS OF SENSE.

Hearing and seeing are probably the most per-
fectly developed of their senses. The machinery
of the internal ear is tolerably well understood, it
being satisfactorily ascertained that fishes are only
susceptible of simple sounds.*

A DISSECTION OF THE EAR OF A HADDOCK, WHICH BEARS
A STRONG RESEMBLANCE TO THE LABYRINTH OF THE HU-
MAN EAR.

c

A. The sacculus vestibuli.

B. The bony concretion which lies within, and which, by
its vibration, increases the impulse on the acoustic nerve.

C. The auditory nerve, passing to be distributed on the
sacculus vestibuli, and the extremities of the semicircular
canals.

D D D. The semicircular canals, three in number, ar-
ranged very much as they are in quadrupeds.

E. One of the extremities of the semicircular canals, in
which a twig of the auditory nerve is seen to be expanded.

F. This is a smaller portion of the same nerve.

* Fishes have no external ear, nor is there any visible open-
ing, except in the skate. But there have been so many

48 ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY

The eye, though widely different from the land-
seeing organ, is readily explained, in all its rela-
tions, by the familiar principles of optics.

In the first place, the fish's eye is nearly glo-
bular and the cornea flat ; in terrestrial animals,
on the other hand, the cornea is a segment of a
small sphere applied to the side of a larger one,
which gives the possessor the manifest advantage
of having the eye extended further into the field of
vision ; — it is also kept convex by the aqueous
humor. Now in the fish, it requires no aqueous
fluid within the eye, because the element in which
it swims is an equivalent. We are supposing
that the reader is perfectly acquainted with the
laws of refraction and reflection of light, but
if he is not, he cannot understand why the lens
is placed so far forward in the fish, towards the
pupil, nor why the cornea is necessarily nearly flat.

quarrels between anatomists on the subject, that all the skates
in the ocean would not pay for the paper, which has been
wasted about a certain little hole in their head, therefore we
shall be careful about getting into the ring. Fishes have just
so much acoustic apparatus as constitutes the central por-
tion of the ear in man, viz : the vestibule and semi-circular
canals, but the whole is boxed up in the solid bones of the
skull, so that sound, propagated through the water, gives a vi-
bratory motion or tremor to the whole body, and which, agi-
tating the auditory nerve, produces the sensation of hearing.
Fishes can easily be taught to feed, in ponds, by the ringing
of a bell.

THE FISHERIES. 49

The water in which the fish lives will always
keep the outer tunics moist, — consequently, na-
ture has not lost labor by bestowing a lachrymal
sac ; — no tears are required for lubrication.

Not being designed for facial expression, the
oblique muscles are merely cords in embryo, as it
were, showing the chain which establishes a rela-
tionship between all races of animals. The pig-
mentum nigrum covers only a portion of the pas-
terior surface of the retina, — enabling them to see
in the day, but the metallic lustre of the remaining
surface, becomes a concave mirror in the night,
which gives them vision, as distinct, probably, as
at noon day. Some fishes are only taken by a
hook in the night : those are the owls, that cannot
see by day. Others, the voracious kinds, dart at
all times, both night and day, at the bait, with
precision. Sharks follow vessels, hundreds of
miles, and never fail to catch every bone which
is thrown overboard, at all times.

But there is another contrivance in the consti-
tution of the fish's eye, very wonderful, inas-
much as it shows most convincingly, a provision
against the pressure of the incumbent column of
water. Thus, in the voracious species, principally
the sharks, the sclerotic, or outside coat, is perfect-
ly hard bone, except on the back, where there is
an opening for the entrance of the optic nerve. In
4

50 ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY

pursuing their prey, at unfathomable depths, for
aught we know, the hydrostatic pressure would
crush in the whole globe were it of mem-
branous tunics, like the land-seeing eye ; but
being of bone, it resists the pressure, and thus
saves the organ. Shoal water fishes, possessing
the membranous eye, if forced down to a certain
depth, would be made blind, and come to the sur-
face with the entire loss of the internal humors. A
pretty accurate judgment may be formed of the
depth to which any species of fish swim, by an
examination of the coats of the eye, as in one case
there are ribs of bone, as in bird's and turtle's eyes,
and in others, flat pieces are inserted, merely to
offer firmer resistance to the pressure of the water,
which is greater there, than on the body.

There are no eye-lids, because it is necessary to
see, even while they sleep. Fishes undoubtedly
sleep, — but necessarily with open and vigilant
eyes.

There are no eyelids, because they would have
been entirely useless, it being necessary for fishes
to perceive, even while they sleep. It has been
said to us that the vitreous, and other humors resist
the external pressure, and therefore our hypothe-
sis in regard to the object of an osseous scleroti-
ca, is quite objectionable. If it were true, that
the vitreous humor, and crystalline lens, were

OF FISHES. 51

of equal density, the internal resistance would be in
proportion to weight placed over it ; but as they
do not correspond, in that respect, they would be
liable to the injuries and destruction, from the cause
that has been mentioned.

Over the eye, the first investing membrane, the
conjunctiva of the human eye, is loose, and wrink-
led in fishes brought up from deep water, but
smooth and glossy on those at medium depths.
Does this not look like compressing the fluids into
smaller space ? It is certain that some aquatic
eyes cannot, by the nature of globular tunics, be
condensed, without rupturing them. But it is
needless to dwell on a subject, which, perhaps, is
already familiar to our readers.

As it respects the power of vision under water,
we can only infer the principle, by our knowledge
of the laws of optics. That fishes see at great dis-
tances, is well established, but a turbfd condition
of the water, renders vision indistinct, and hence
they are often deceived, and involved in fearful
difficulties. In clear, calm weather, they proba-
bly are able to discover objects much farther than
would at first be supposed, considering the medi-
um through which the light is transmitted. The
whale examines a boat one or two miles off, dis-
tinctly, and if enraged by the sting of a harpoon,
runs or swims with prodigious speed towards the
object that has excited its revenge.

52 ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY

When fishes are out of water, they see indis-
tinctly, as a man descerns things with his head sub-
mersed. Pearl divers, on the coast of Brazil, see
objects precisely as an aged person does through
concave glasses. It has been ascertained that
there is an advantage in furnishing the divers with
spectacles, whose convexity, on both sides, is just
equal to the convexity of their own corneas. The
reason is plain : — without them they cannot judge
accurately of distances. In reaching out the hand
for an oyster, which appears within reach, it may,
perhaps, be at the distance of ten feet ; hence
there is a loss of time, requiring the Indian to come
up for breath, and plunge again, to correct the de-
ception of vision. The rationale of this error of
vision, is simply this : viz, the aqueous humor of
the diver's eye, is of the samedensity of the water
that covers him, therefore, there is no refraction of
the rays of light, or at least, only a very little, in
passing from the water, to the retina, but the con-
vex artificial lenses, remedy the defect, most per-
fectly.

When the fish is brought into the air, the eye
not being defended either by eyelids, brushes of
hair, or, indeed, by anything more than the con-
junctiva, which is nothing more than a continua-
tion of the common skin of the head, carried over
the globe, the first glare of light partially paralyses

OF FISHES. 53

the optic nerve ; but the organ begins at once to
accommodate itself, in some degree, to the exi-
gency of the case : the pupil diminishes its diame-
ter a trifle, but the fish then sees precisely, as we
see under water ; in reality, it is near-sighted.
Having no aqueous humor, the refraction produces
the utmost confusion for the moment. We have no-
ticed, that in putting a fish back into the water, after
having been in the air a few seconds, the vision is
very considerably deranged ; it swims against what-
ever may be in the line of its direction : indeed,
there does not appear to be any determinate pur-
pose ; but as soon as the visual organs have re-ac-
commodated themselves again to the water, and
the optic axes are restored from the distortion
which they received in the atmosphere, the fortu-
nate refugee appears again as it did before the
capture.

Before leaving this subject, we cannot refrain
from making some observations on the structure of
the eyes of the Anableps Tetrophthalmus, a scaly
fish, from four to ten inches in length, found at
Surinam, and, we believe, no where else. By
the politeness of Captain James Crosby, of Bos-
ton, and the American Consul, at Surinam, we
have been provided with several specimens, in a
fine state of preservation. As it respects the hab-
its of the anableps, we are not informed, but the

54 ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY

structure of its eyes is such a remarkable deviation
from every other living creature, that we hope to
be pardoned for the prolixity of these remarks.

In the first place, the cornea presents an acute
horizontal angle, along its middle, — and on each
side, sloping off at angles of forty-five degrees, the
corneas, for in reality there are two of them, are flat
surfaces, in our specimens, though probably slight-
ly convexed in life. Thus, it will be understood,
that two sides of a common prism, represents them.
On a careful dissection we have ascertained that
the sclerotica is a cartilaginous box, nearly globu-
lar, rolling within a bony orbit, which is entirely
elevated above the plane of the cranium. The
partition between the two corneas, is membranous,
and like the blade of a knife, the further edge be-
ing attached to the capsule of the crystalline lens.
The iris, therefore, is divided in the middle, so that
the pupil resembles a half moon, either side, or in
other words, above and below the horizontal parti-
tion. On minute inspection, we cannot discover
any difference of shape or structure in the lens,
from the same refracting instrument in the eyes of
other fishes. Certain it is, that the anableps can
perceive objects from above and below, — embra-
cing half a circle in the sphere of distinct vision,
and that is the only advantage, at first view, we can
imagine they derive from the organization of the

OF FISHES. 55

prismatic cornea. On the other hand, the whole
globe is so raised upon the top of the head, that
without this structure, they would, perhaps, only
distinguish objects that were on a ' level with the
base of the orbit ; a defect, admitting such to be
the fact, completely obviated, by giving the cornea
an acute angle across its horizontal centre — al-
lowing the rays of light, from the angle subtended
by the planes of the two corneas, to reach the re-
tina from two directions, nearly perpendicular to
the horizon. Some have imagined that the one
pupil was long-sighted, for distant views, and the
other short-sighted, for minute objects.

THE EYE OF THE ANABLEPS TETROPHTHALMUS.

Fishes are acutely sensible of touch ; — the
sense of smelling, for which appropriate nerves
are elaborately distributed, gives them the faculty
of detecting the existence of food, or enemies, at
immense distances. Taste is undoubtedly the
weakest of their senses, — residing, if at all, in

56

ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY

the assophagus, as everything presented to them,
under circumstances of hunger, is swallowed with
ravenous avidity, without regard to quality or
flavor.

SCHEME OF THE DISTRIBUTION OF THE VERTEBRAL NERVES
OF THE FISH, FOLLOWING THE COURSES OF THE FLOAT-
ING OR CILIARY BONES.

AGE TO WHICH THEY LIVE.

PeVhaps there is no subject on which the natu-
ralist has labored with less success, than in trying
to ascertain the age to which fishes attain. Ad-
mitting that an individual of any species were un-
disturbed by enemies, or unmolested by its own
kindred, and quietly enjoying a circumscribed body
of water, amply supplied with appropriate food,
there is no reason for doubting that it would live
for many centuries. We know of no limits to
their longevity, nor can we suppose that the inter-
nal machinery would wear itself out, so long as
the digestive organs were properly excited.

OF FISHES. 57

But the time must ultimately arrive when death
will terminate their existence ; though admirably
constructed for an uncommonly long life, they are
not, nor can they be exempted from the operation
of a law, which to intelligent beings, is contempla-
ted with the deepest feelings of awe and solem-
nity.

Pike and carp, in artificial ponds, have been re-
peatedly found, with gold rings in their fins, and
other kinds of labels, on which were also found dates,
that proved, conclusively, that one hundred years
had elapsed since the inscription was made.

Gesner speaks of a pike that was known to be
267 years old. It is affirmed by some of the French
writers, that several pike are in a pond, which for-
merly belonged to the Duke of Orleans, father of
the present king, so very aged, that their original
complexion is completely lost : they have become
of a dingy hue, and actually give the spectator
the idea of extreme old age.

Cartilaginous fishes have a still greater prospect
of living to an advanced period. Instead of bones,
as previously remarked, their skeletons are elastic,
having but a small portion of earthy matter in them.
As the vessels secrete but little ossific matter, they
do not become rigid, as in the land animal : — the
heart is in no danger of being converted into bone,
. — indeed, we do not know why many of them

58 ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY

might not live and continue to grow for a thou-
sand years.

It was at one time thought that the circles dis-
coverable on the ends of the vertebrae of the osse-
ous tribes, indicated the age, — as the rings on the
extremity of a log, marked the years of the growth
of the tree. Those, unfortunately, are no guides,
— and we therefore regret that we know of no
mode, at the present day, of solving a problem of
the highest interest to the curious. Of the marine
fishes, the sharks unquestionably, reach a truly pa-
triarchal age.

SLEEP.

Exposed as these animals must necessarily be, to
the voracious jaws of millions of belligerent, as well
as hungry associates, — it would seem hardly pos-
sible that they should find a safe opportunity for
this kind of rest, however much they might at any
period require it. Again, being without eye-lids,
they would be regarded, at first thought, as organiz-
ed to require no suspension of the powers of voli-
tion. Impossible as it is to speak with certainty
on this point, we are fully persuaded that they not
only require sleep, but that they also find safe and
convenient times to enjoy that sort of repose. Gold
fishes, in vases, repose, regularly through the night,

OF FISHES. 59

after the lights have been extinguished. This is
inferred from their remaining precisely in one posi-
tion, six and eight hours at a time.

PROCREATION.

Fishes are astonishingly prolific : — a majority are
oviperous, and some of the condropterygii are vi-
viperous. This latter class, however, are less nu-
merous than the first. It has been often asserted
by credible writers, that the cod produces nine mil-
lion of eggs in a season ; — the common flounder a
million, and the mackerel, above five hundred
thousand. On the other hand, the cartilaginous
varieties seldom give birth to more than a few
hundreds of living young at a time. If only one
in the three hundred arrives at maturity, its power
will ensure the continuance of the race, but with
the social and andromous, scarcely ten eggs in a
thousand are ever developed, — being the necessa-
ry aliment of others, — but the continuance of the
species is thus insured against all probable contin-
gencies.

Each egg is filled with a yolk, surrounded by aF*
bumen, like that of the serpent, the crocodile, and
the bird. They are commonly extruded in shal-
low water, out of the reach of eddies, where by the
glutinous envelope in which the mass is held to-

60 ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY

gether, they get fastened to some stick or stone,
which retains them in a favorable condition for
the influence of solar heat. By what combina-
tion of circumstances the male is apprised of the
desire which the female has for expelling her bar-
den, cannot be explained : but it is nevertheless
true, that they commonly accompany her, and no
sooner are the ova deposited, than he swims over
them to complete the process. There is no ac-
quaintance between the parents : the male, in com-
ing in contact with the spawn, is excited by the
presence of the appropriate stimulus of the genital
organs, and a fluid is emitted over them, which,
though greatly diluted in water into which it is
infused, exerts a specific action on the egg, which
immediately begins to quicken into life.

It may so happen, however, that the male of
another species accidentally in his wanderings,
comes in the region of roes — which excite him to
expregnate them, just as readily, as the presence
and contact of those of the family to which he be-
longs. The excitation effected by the eggs, can-
not be withstood, — for there are no moral re-
straints in the regions below, and physical necessi-
ty, absolutely, in this instance, forces into being, a
race partaking of the habits and characteristics of
the two progenitors.

Sir Humphrey Davy says, "it is a fertile and a

OF FISHES. 61

very curious subject for new experiments, — that
of crossing the breeds of fishes, and offers a very
interesting and untouched field of investigation,
which I hope will soon be taken up by some en-
lightened country gentleman, who in this way
might make not only curious, but useful discove-
ries."

We have stated the fact that the ova are im-
pregnated out of the body of the mother, and it
may appear somewhat surprising that the mere
pouring of the seminal fluid from the milt of the
dead male, is equally successful. The vitality of
fishes is of an order so low, that the temperature
of the air or of the water, is generally equal to the
heat of their blood, — hence no vital property is
lost, even in the dead fish, if the experiment is per-
formed before the commencement of putrefaction.

Jacobi, a German experimentalist, on the in-
crease of trout, and salmon, has satisfactorily set-
tled the question, that this operation can be done
very readily. That gentleman raised his own
trout, from the egg, which he accomplished in the
following manner. He had a box, with a wire gra-
ting at one end, for admitting the water, freely,
from a lively stream — and holes, at the other end
for the same water to pass out : thus there was a
running course over small pebbles, placed on the
bottom. In November and December, when the

62 ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY

trout were nearly in a condition for spawning, he
caught both males and females in a net. By gen-
tle pressure of the hands, the ova were received in-
to a vessel of water. He then, by similar contri-
vance, forced the seminal liquor of the male into
the vessel, and after the two had been in this con-
dition only a few minutes, he placed the eggs in
his hatching box, to wait the result. At the expi-
ration of a few weeks, the parchment-like shells
burst — and to his unspeakable delight, the box
was swarming wTith an immense school of infant
trout. To each individual, was appended a little sac,
which contained the yolk. This was their food
for a considerable time — being gradually taken
into the stomach, by the absorbing function of the
naval string. Here is a very striking analogy to
the provision, which is made for the young of birds.
The yolk does not in any wray become organized
in the process of incubation : — it was expressly
designed for the first food of the newly created an-
imal. Surely, this is an illustration of the homely
saying, " that there is never a mouth without some-
thing to put into it." When the chick is hatch-
ed, the yolk is still as perfect, as before, but in-
stead of being in the old shell, it is now within the
body. Enclosed in a slightly elastic capsule, there
is a duct leading from it, that terminates in the
stomach. Through this, it continues flowing, as

OF FISHES,

63

fast as the necessities of the system require it, —
till the whole is ultimately exhausted. When this
is finished, the pipe becomes a binding ligament
of the viscera, and the little tottling biped, is ready
to pick up something with its bill.

A YOUNG SHARK CARRYING THE YOLK OF THE EGG FROM
WHICH IT WAS HATCHED, SUSPENDED BY THE UMBILICAL
CORD, IN A SAC.

Farmers, from their ignorance of the wonderful
provision by Divine Providence, for all oviperous
animals, destroy a va'st deal of young poultry, in
their mistaken humanity in trying to make them
feed too soon. Let them alone, and they will give
seasonable indications of their simple wants.

From the box, Jacobi transported his stock, and
founded new colonies wherever he chose. Bloch
relates, as the result of an experiment, in speaking
of the reproductive power of the carp, that in a
pond of seven acres, in which were placed four

64 ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY

males and three females, the increase was 110,000
young carp.

Interesting a,s this inquiry must be to the phys-
iologist, we regret the necessity for bringing it to a
close ; this we are unwilling to do, without express-
ing an earnest hope, that these observations will
induce others, more competent than ourselves', to
pursue an investigation, fraught with such a high
degree of interest.

GROWTH.

Probably the spinous fishes complete their
growth much sooner than terrestrial animals which,
at an adult age, arrive to about the same weight.
On the other hand, the cartilaginous, as well as
some varieties of the flat ones, continue to increase
in size, under favorable circumstances, many years.
The skate, which in this northern latitude, does not
often exceed five feet in breadth, in the West In-
dies, has been known to attain the enormous size
of twenty-five feet in length, by fourteen in
breadth.

The rapid growth of some fish is very extraor-
dinary. Three pike were taken out of a pond in
StrafFordshire, belonging to the present Sir Jervoise
Clark Jervoise, two of which weighed thirtysix
pounds each, and the other thirtyfive pounds.

OF FISHES. 65

The pond was fished every seven years, and suppos-
ing that store pike of six or seven pound weight were
left in it, the growth of the pike in question must have
been at the rate of at least four pounds a year. Sal-
mon, however, grow much faster. It is now ascer-
tained that grilse, or young salmon, of from two
and a half, to three pounds weight, which are sent
to London markets in the month of May, come
from spawn only deposited in the preceding Octo-
ber or November, and the ova takes three months
of the time to quicken. It has also been ascer-
tained by experiment, that a grilse which weighed
six pounds in February, after spawning, has, on its
return from the sea in September, weighed thirteen
pounds ; and a salmon fry of April, will in June
weigh four pounds, and in August, six pounds.

BRAIN BONES.

Contiguous to the lobes of the brain, natural-
ists have discovered two peculiar bones, in com-
mon parlance, called brain bones. They are ena-
melled, like the finest tooth ; convexed on one
side, concave on the other, and serrated at the
edges. By cooks, these bones are termed the fish
money. By boiling, they are easily detached. In
looking into the cavity in which they are lodged, it
is evident that the fibres of the acoustic nerve ran
5

66 PHYSIOLOGY OF FISHES.

through it : a gelatinous fluid, glairy, of a similar
character to the white of an egg, seems both to
suspend the bone, and also afford a proper bed for
defending the nerves. Though comparative anat-
omists are not precisely satisfied as to the office
they sustain, it is pretty generally conceded that
they are a part of the organ of hearing. If, how-
ever, our readers will examine the diagram we
have given of the labyrinth of the fish's ear, which
corresponds very nearly with the vestibule and se-
micircular canals of the human ear, he will per-
ceive that the brain bones are entirely unnecessary
to the perfection of the organ. Their use is not
understood.*

* Since the compositor completed the preceding pages, in
which it is remarked that fishes are without eye-lids, a speci-
men has come to hand, of a small fish, seven inches in length,
from Africa, the mounting of whose eyes on the top of the
head, bears some resemblance to the anableps, covered by a
regular pair of eye-lids. This must be regarded as belonging
to an unknown genus. In a small shark, too, we have detect-
ed the nictitating membrane, organized much as it is in the
owl, and other night-seeing birds.

CLASSIFICATION.

Aristotle is supposed to have been the first
naturalist who regarded fishes as a distinct class of
animals, though he seems not to have understood
their very peculiar organization. Pliny was the
next writer of antiquity who devoted much atten-
tion to them, though from the earliest ages of the
world, they were an important article of food, as
much as at the present day.

Without detailing the classifications of a series
of distinguished writers, those of Linnaeus and Cu-
vier are now generally adopted. Had that great and
good man, Cuvier, been permitted to live a
few more years, he would probably have completed
that splendid work on fishes, which occupied
many years of his industrious life — and which, oc
a dying bed, he spoke of leaving in an unfinished
condition, with the deepest interest and regret.

Linnaeus divided these animals into five orders :

1. Apodal, — with bony gills, and no ventral fins.

2. Jugular, — with bony gills, and ventral fins before the
pectoral.

3. Thoracic, — with bony gills, and ventral fins under the
throat.

68 CLASSIFICATION.

4. Abdominal, — with bony gills, and ventral fins behind
the thorax.

5. Brajychiostagous, — with gills destitute of bony rays
or concealed gills.

6. Chondropterygious, — with cartilaginous gills, and
leathery fins, the common skin being continued over them.

Cuvier found there was a great deal of difficul-
ty and vexation, when an attempt was made to
divide them into orders, " established on fixed and
precise characters ; but the two great divisions,
founded on the character of their bones, as being
cartilaginous or osseous, are natural and well mark-
ed. The first series, or chondropterygii, have, as
a general character, the palatine bones arranged
so as to supply the place of those of the upper
jaws." He therefore divided them into three or-
ders.

CHONDROPTERYGII.

1. Cyclostomi, — The jaws fixed in an immovable ring,
but the branchial openings numerous.

2. Selachti, — with branchiae as in the preceding, but not
their jaws.

3. Sturiones, — branchiae opening as usual, in a cleft,
protected by an operculum, or gill cover.

OS SEOUS.

4. Plectognathi, — maxillary bone, and palatine arch, fix-
ed to the cranium.

5. Lophobranchii, — with complete jaws, but having
the branchiae in small tufts.

6. Malacopterygii Abdominales, — ventral fins on
the hinder part of the abdomen.

CLASSIFICATION. 69

7. Malacopterygii Sbbrachuti, — ventral fins un-
der the pectoral, on the throat.

8. Malacopterygii Apodes, — destitute entirely of
fins.

9. Acanthopterygii. — first dorsal fin, or the first por-
tion of both, where there are two, having spinous rays.

This last order, Acanthopterygii, is divided
into seven families : —

1. Tcenioides, — as Mediterranean Band-fish — having a
short snout.

2. Gobioides, — without a swimming bladder, and having
slender flexible dorsal spines, as the brenny.

3. Labroides, — a single dorsal fin, as the Wrasse, of Euro-
pean seas.

4. Percoides, — having the dorsal and anal fin supported be-
fore, by strong, sharp spines, as thesculpin and perch.

5. Seomberoides, — having small scales, as the mackerel.

6. Squamipenneg , — scales encrusting the soft part of the
dorsal and anal fins, as the Chcelodon.

7. Fistularidce, — the mouth at the extremity of a long
tube, which is a prolongation of the ethmoid, and other bones
of the head, as the pipe fish.

CLASS I.
CARTILAGINOUS FISHES

ORDER I.— CYCLOSTOMI.

GEN. PETROMYZON.

Sea Lamprey. — Petromyzon Marinus. Like
the eel family, in general, the lamprey has a long,
flexible, slender body, covered with an oily excre-
tion, admirably fitting it to slide into dark,
and oftentimes difficult hiding places. It is
unsocial in its habits, — timid in the day-time, but
voracious, courageous and unyielding in the night,
when it ventures from its lurking place, in search of
food. The size to which they grow in the arms
of the sea, in the limits of Massachusetts, particu-
larly, is not great, nor are they commonly more
than two feet in length. As the traveller, howev-
er, follows the southern shore, he not only finds
the sea lamprey much thicker, but also much long-
er. Three feet may be considered an average
length in the southern states, but the saltness of the
water and its coldness, so far to the north, is unfa-
vorable to their multiplication, as well as magni-

PETROMYZON,

71

tude. To the eastward, at the mouths of some of
the rivers, in Maine, the marinus, even when fully-
grown, does not exceed seventeen and twenty
inches.

This fish may be designated, with certainty, by
its marbled, brownish skin, — possessing a silvery
shade towards the underside of the abdomen, —
and one dorsal fin, distinct from the second. In
the top of wThat authors call the maxillary ring,
there are two large teeth. Though there may be
variations in color and size, in following the coast,
it may be distinguished by the other marks which
have been detailed. Within the inner side of the
jaws, and commencement of the fauces, are twen-
ty rows of fine teeth, and seven breathing holes on
the side of the neck.

SALT WATER LAMPREY.

All the lamprey's movements, strikingly resem-
ble those of the serpent, nor does their muscular
apparatus differ essentially from it.

72 PETROMYZON.

The manner in which the gills are arranged, un-
der the skin, is a subject of deep interest to the
anatomist, inasmuch as he discovers at once, a
structure of the utmost consequence to the species,
since they were expressly designed by nature to
occupy a place where no other beings were loca-
ted, viz : — the muddy beds of bays, — the ooze
which accumulates in estuarie^ and in fact, just
those places where fishes could not live on account
of the foreign matter in the water, which would
clog up their gills, and consequently produce
death.

Between the side of the mouth and the skin,
there is a long canal, or pocket, in which the bran-
chiae, or fringes of the gills are placed in a row.
Opposite the space or little apartment, between
every two fringes, there is a round hole, tipped with
a cartilaginous ring, precisely like a hoop, to keep
it always open. When the lamprey is snugly coil-
ed up in a bed of loose, dark mud, where it finds
a variety of marine worms, putrid remains of vari-
ous animals, &c, forced into such basins by the
eddying tides, it strains the water through a very
small aperture, into which it forms its mouth, till the
tinder side, or gular pouch is considerably distend-
ed, when by the action of the muscles about the
jaws, it is driven through all the fringes, and comes
out at the orifices. By this beautiful, yet simple

PETROMYZON. 73

contrivance, no mud can get into the fringes, — or
if it does into the side holes, the next exertion of
the jaws, throws a stream of water to wash it out
again. So far as the gular pouch is concerned, in
the respiratory function, the lamprey bears consid-
erable analogy to the lizards. Breathing, with
those reptiles, is an entirely voluntary act : — the
mouth is drawn full of air, through the nostrils,
and then, the under jaw being in action like a bel-
lows, forces it into the lungs.

As an article of food, they have been much priz-
ed, but as we do not see them very frequently in
the stalls, it is conjectured they are scarce, or there
are not purchasers enough to compensate for the
trouble of collecting them.

FRESH WATER LAMPREY.

Fresh Water Lamprey. — Petromyzon Flu-
viatilis. There is scarcely a portion of New Eng-
land, even in the most elevated regions, in which
the river lamprey may not be found. The ety-
mology of the name petromyzon, is found in two
Greek words, signifying to suck a stone.

Usually, its color is a dark olive on the back,

74 PETROMYZON.

but with a light yellowish tinge on the abdomen.
The first dorsal fin, like that of the sea lamprey, is
separated from the second. To all intents and pur-
poses, it is the same fish, — having the character-
istic two large teeth, only it is found in ponds and
streams so remote from the ocean, that it is next
to impossible that it should have had, within cen-
turies, any intercourse with the sea, though that is
the original seat of their ancestry.

Birds, in their rapid flights from one section of a
country to another, have not only distributed the
eggs of fishes and the seeds of plants, but even the
living animals themselves. It is in this way, that we
are obliged to account, for example, for the ap-
pearance of a lamprey in a small pool, hundreds
of miles from the ocean, which has no communica-
tion, whatever, with running streams. The wad-
ing birds, as the heron, might swallow one of these
animals, whose vitality is of so low an order, that
it is not necessary for them to breathe a mouthful
of water, even for many hours, — and convey it in
its intestinal tube, three hundred miles, and if it
were voided, where such carnivorous birds would
be most disposed to rest, the fish would recover
any temporary injury by the journey, — and if it
were pregnant, the race would be propagated, and
thus the waters of the interior of the country, be-
come stocked by a new family of aquatic be-
ings.

PETROMYZON. 75

Such is the power of life, that it completely re-
sists, for a long time, the gastric juice of the stom-
ach. Repeated observations are on record, by
credible eye-witnesses, who have seen birds of
prey, swallow an eel, that escaped, unharmed, in
a few minutes. Nor is this so very strange, when
it is recollected that the intestine is very short and
large, and that the imprisoned fish has prodigious
strength, in proportion to its weight, and above all
the rest, coated with a mucous, so slippery, that
the grip of a strong man's hand, cannot hold one
fast.

On some of the highest points of the green moun-
tain, between Massachusetts and New York, in
those small basins of water which are formed be-
tween different eminences, lobsters are not only
numerous, but really and truly formed, precise-
ly like those of the ocean, yet they rarely exceed
two inches in length. The question at once arises,
how came these animals in that locality, if the ova
of the lobster were not conveyed there by some
bird ?■ The fresh water, together with the climate
of those high regions, have prevented the full de-
velopment of those miniature lobsters, though in
character, habit and anatomical structure, there is
the most perfect resemblance : — and were the
ova from the family on the mountain, placed
under favorable circumstances, in the borders of

76 PETROMYZON.

the sea, we have no doubt that the progeny would
be as large, in one or two generations, as any spe-
cimens which are exhibited from the ocean.

Occasionally, this lamprey may be seen in broad
day, in a clear spot of still water, in a bend of the
river, with its mouth firmly fixed to a stone —
while its body gently waves in the water. The
mouth, indeed, is surrounded by a ring, which they
can enlarge or diminish at pleasure. When thus
adhering by the lips, by suction, for hours togeth-
er, they do not breathe : in order to exercise the
gills, they must first let go the hold and close the
jaws suddenly, to propel the volume through the
lateral apertures.

The Montreal Courant says, " On Wednesday
last a large sturgeon was observed to leap from
the water into a canoe lying at the island in the
port, opposite the foot of St. Joseph-street. Im-
mediately means were taken to secure the fish,
which, when taken, was found to have two lam-
preys, about seven inches in length, sticking to its
body, one on the top of the head, and the other
on the insertion of the large fin next the gills.
There cannot be a doubt but the fish, in its ago-
nies and efforts to get rid of the lampreys, sprung
out of the water with such violence as to precipi-
tate it into the canoe in its descent. The pecu-
liar construction of the mouths of lampreys, show

PETROMYZON. 77

how powerfully they can attach themselves to any
substance, and seem expressly constructed to give
them a powerful suction ; nor is the rapacity of
these fishes less than their power of laying hold of
their prey ; for when kept some time out of the
water, and again placed near the sturgeon, they
seized it a second time with much eagerness. The
sturgeon measured three feet eight inches ; his lit-
tle tormenters not a sixth part of his length, nor a
sixteenth of his weight."

These are considered excellent eating, in most
places, but on what account, we cannot understand,
since, if possible, their external appearance is more
forbidding than many other chondropterygious fish-
es, which are held in utter abhorrence.

Stewed lampreys, in England, was a dish once
held in high estimation. King Henry I. died of a
surfeit, in consequence of eating too heartily of this
favorite dainty.

In the reign of Henry IV., says a writer in the
Conversations Lexicon, so highly were they esteem-
ed, " that protection was granted to such vessels as
might bring them in ; and his successor issued a
warrant to William of Nantes, for supplying him
and his army with this article of food, wherever
they might happen to march."

In severe weather, the lamprey endeavors to
hide in deep places among the rocks, — but the

78 PETROMYZON.

fishermen, by extending pits, communicating with
the ocean, into which blood is thrown, entice
them into the spots where they stand in readiness
to capture them.

Some suppose the lamprey of Rome was of an-
other genus, the murenophis.* Pliny informs us
that Lucullus had fish ponds in the vicinity of Na-
ples, of such vast extent, that after the death of
the owner, the fish in them sold for 4,000,000 ses-
terces, — equal the sum of $ 170,000. One Hir-
rius had a pond exclusively for his lampreys, —
and so ample was his stock, that on a certain occa-
sion, when Caesar made a grand entertainment, he
furnished him with six thousand. The celebrated
orator, Hortensius, owned one, which seems to
have been a particular favorite, for it is said " that
he wept bitterly," when it was dead. Antonia, the
wife of Drusus, exhibited her affection for one of
them, by ornamenting it with jewels, but we are not
informed how they were put on. Its bite was, in
those days, considered poisonous, but no such opin-
ions are entertained in this age ; or if they are,
they are unfounded.

Annually, the city of Gloucester, we are told,
but for what reason, we have not been able to as-

* Several writers refer to the Gymnothorax, which was in
such estimation with the Romans. History relates the curi-
ous circumstance of a Roman lady going into mourning on ac
count of the death of a favorite muraena.

PETROMYZON. 79

certain, at Christmas, used to present a lamprey-
eel pie to the king. Much is said by the old wri-
ters, of the Roman eel, which nearly resembled
the species under consideration. Reservoirs were
constructed, on a magnificent scale, by the opulent,
where the lampreys were made so docile, by reg-
ular feeding, as to rise to the surface when called.
Pliny relates, as a fact, that one Vedious Pollio, a
particular friend of Augustus, took delight in throw-
ing his slaves into the eel vats, for the pleasure of
seeing them torn to pieces and devoured. On a
particular occasion, the emperor honored Pollio
with his company, at a brilliant entertainment, at
which a slave unfortunately happened to break a
costly crystal vase. The unfeeling master, in a
paroxysm of fury, exclaimed to the other attend-
ants,— " away with him to the muraenae." The
poor wretch, all but dead with horror, fell at the
feet of the emperor, beseeching that he might be
permitted to die some death lest terrible ! Aston-
ished at the sudden and strange circumstance, Au-
gustus made speedy inquiry into this extraordinary
mode of punishment, and when he fully understood
the savage cruelty, disposition and practice, of Pol-
lio, ordered, at once, all the remaining vessels bro-
ken before his face : — directed the reservoirs to be
filled up, — gave freedom to the pleading slave,
and only consented to spare the life of the murder-
er, his master, in consideration of his former regard.

80 SCIUAUDES,

ORDER II.— SELACHII.

SQ.UALIDES.

Sharks have no bones like those of the second
class of fishes ; they are elastic, cartilaginous por-
tions, embraced by numerous muscles. The bran-
chiae are pectinated, — the openings quite numer-
ous, without gill covers, and the palate and post-
mandibulary bones are studded with teeth. They
have pectoral and ventral fins, — but the last is
placed backwards, on the abdomen. While some
are viviparous, others are oviparous, — and all the
males may be identified by appendages at the in-
ternal margin of the ventral fins. Though these
are the indications of the sex, their use is totally
unknown.

GEN. SCYLLIAM.

Sea-Dog, — Scyllium Canicula, — le chein de
mer, of which we have a well preserved specimen,
four feet in length. It follows the perch, when they
first make their appearance in the spring, in the
margin of deep water. It has a remarkable metal-
lic color, like crude antimony. The teeth are ve-
ry small, giving the sensation to the finger of a
coarse rasp ; its body is slender, the head flat, —
the nose long and pointed : — the eyes much re-

SCYLLIUM.

81

sembling the cats, are placed low, towards the
snout. Beside the above marks, it will be recog-
nised by an anal fin, exactly opposite the space

which is between the two dorsals. When the
dead body is handled, it is as flexible as a whip-
lash,— tough and leathery. Though we know
nothing with certainty of its habits, it probably
possesses all the traits of character, peculiar to the
order.

Scyllium Catulus, — a little shark, very sim-
ilar to the preceding, only about eighteen inches
long. Its color is that of ashes — having shades
of a red tinge, when first drawn from the water, on
the sides, towards the corners of the mouth. The
mouth, in this, is small, and shaped much like a
horse-shoe, — but so completely underside the
head, further back than the eyes, that it is strange
they can apply the jaws at all, to hold their prey.
One of these miniature sharks, the past season,
was drawn into a pleasure boat, by a gentleman
6

82 SQUALIDES.

fishing for cod, that quite frightened his associates
by its spiteful snappings.

Dog-Fish, — Squalus Canis. A manifest dif-
ference is observable between the sea-dog and the
true dog-fish, the first, which has been described,
more nearly resembles the blue shark, whereas,
the latter, so far as it regards anatomical structure,
approximates the sea-wolf, — in having a long, stiff,
dorsal fin, hard, conical, irregular teeth, a rough
skin, which, when dry, is used by cabinet makers
for polishing wood, and by surgical instrument ma-
kers, for covering cases.

It is a spiteful, voracious, cartilaginous shark,
— very muscular, and the eternal enemy of the
cod, — getting possession of the feeding ground,
some seasons, to the great loss of the fishermen.
In 1831, they were, so uncommonly numerous, that
the cod-fishery was attended with immense loss.
The dog-fish is so familiarly known along the en-
tire coast of the United States, that it is quite un-
necessary to be minute in the description.

GEN. CARCHARIAS.

White Shark, — Carcharias Vulgaris. All
sharks are a solitary, rapacious, blood-thirsty spe-
cies of animal, carrying slaughter and certain de-
struction, wherever they go. They are, as respects
their own element, precisely what the Bengal

CARCHABIAS.

tiger is in India, — the most insidious and cruel, of
all the inhabitants of the great deep. Of all oth-
ers, the white shark is the most terrific, and
therefore regarded by mariners with peculiar
dread.

WHITE SHARK.

White sharks cannot be said to be very common
on this coast ; vessels, in approaching the land, oc-
casionally discover one of these huge devourers,
gently gliding through the water, in the wake of
the rudder.

Usually the color is a light ash, hence its
name, though it is by no means always of that
shade. On the back, as with nearly all fishes, the
skin is quite dark ; the tail has three lobes ; teeth
exceedingly numerous, — and the body, when fully
grown, from twenty to thirty feet long. In trop-
ical climates, however, it attains its greatest size.
Fossil teeth of a shark, to which family the one under
consideration belongs, are found at Malta, measuring
four and a half inches from the point to the base, and

84 SQUALIDES.

six inches from the point to the angle. All the
fossil bones of the antediluvian races, which have
been discovered, show that the primitive animals
were of far greater magnitude than those of the
present time. Perhaps there is no subject of deep-
er interest to the naturalist, than this curious fact,
sustained by the exhibition of entire skeletons, in
the cabinets of this country and Europe. These
prove, conclusively, that those which preceded
the present occupants of the soil, were truly gigan-
tic. The perfect bones of a lizard, sixty feet in
length ; — the teeth, skulls, and vertebrae of the
mastadon, as well as some others, will ever re-
main objects of wonder and astonishment. Were
those moving mountains of flesh, proportioned to
the products of the earth ? and if so, and they
were permitted to roam over the globe, what
physical change in the constitution of the world,
rendered it necessary to drive entire species utter-
ly from existence, by a sudden and terrible des-
olation ? After the deluge, the animals which
were distributed over the continent of Asia, seem
to have been diminished in form, and though, in
process of time, exceedingly numerous, the ag-
gregate, apparently, is better proportioned to the
amount of sustenance, yielded by the soil.

How these observations will apply to the
water, we are not prepared to say. The whale

CARCHAR1AS. 85

is probably as large as the primitive whales,
but those animals which were certainly on the dry
land once, corresponding in bulk and power to
those in the ocean, no longer have a being.

But to return ; — the white shark, in his wide,
dilatable jaws, has six rows of sharp, triangular
teeth, which can be raised or depressed by appro-
priate muscles, at pleasure. Its velocity is such,
that nothing seems to be able to escape, and its
greediness is never to be satisfied. By one gripe of
the jaws, they can cut a man in two. A red
hot cannon ball is sometimes lowered over
the side to one of these disagreeable followers
of a ship, which the seaman has the satisfaction
of seeing the shark receive, into his yawning
throat.

At the pearl fisheries of South America, where
white sharks are numerous, visiting the mighty cav-
erns in the rocks, the water being so clear, that a
small object may be seen at considerable distance,
the divers, familiar with the character of the mon-
ster, in their descents for the oyster, are obliged to
go armed, in self defence. For this purpose, some
carry a long sharp knife. As the shark's mouth is
placed somewhat under the head, he endeavors to
get over his intended victim, and if he discovers
no disposition in the Indian to move, gently settles
down over him with his horrible mouth widely

86 SaUALIDES.

extended. With the coolness of a philosopher, the
instant he is near enough to be reached, the diver
plunges the knife into his vitals. A very ingenious
mode, which is practised, says a writer, from whom
these observations have been principally extract-
ed, is for the diver to carry down with him four or
five hard wood sticks, about two feet long, sharpened
at both ends. In case he is likely to be disturbed in
his search for the oyster, by the visit of this king
of sharks, he thrusts one of the sticks between
his jaws, as he is in the act of closing them.
This props them asunder, and the force with
which they are brought to act on the stick,
securely pins both ends into the bones, — and
away he goes, without the possibility of a remedy.
Instances have been known of an Indian, who was
so sharply set upon, that he gave away three sticks
in succession, before quitting his dangerous post.

At the Marquesas Islands, where this shark
abounds, the natives swim in the midst of them
quite fearlessly ; and the only reason why more
of them are not devoured, must be the peculiar
ease witk which they are supplied with large
fish. Whenever, however, a native is so un-
happy as to be caught by one of them, his
associates never exert themselves in the least,
to extricate him, because it is a common matter
of belief there, that sharks never seize any

GARCHARIAS. 87

but the wicked — or transgressors of law, and
therefore the man deserves to die.

A gentleman of our acquaintance informed us,
that he saw a young girl swimming from a Boston
vessel, waiting to receive a cargo of sandal
wood, with a heavy bar of iron on her shoulder,
which she had contrived to steal from the deck.
She swam under water a considerable distance,
before coming up for breath, but the moment she
was seen, the boats put off, with the expectation
of recovering the bar.

Just as the boats were so near that she was fear-
ful of being struck with an oar, which was raised
by a man in the bow, she plunged a second time —
the boats pursued the track, but as she came up to
the surface, still holding the iron, a " mighty white
sharlc swallowed her at one effort ; — the veloci-
ty towards his object being so great, that as he
rolled upward, the girl was driven down his
throat."

He also saw a shark seize a man by the leg,
just below the knee, who, at the instant, being
just ashore, grasped a projecting stone on the
beach. The Shark drew with all its might, but
the man held on, screaming most piteously for aid,
but, although many of his comrades were near, no
one came to his assistance. His leg was dreadfully
lacerated, and the bone crushed : — in that con-

88 SQUALIDES.

dition he was exhausted by the loss of blood, and
the shark gained its object.

West India negroes, sometimes show a fearless
dexterity in diving in among these sharks, with
keen knives, purposely for the pleasure of butch-
ering them. On the coast of California, the In-
dians, occasionally sustain extraordinary combats
with the same species, for the amusement of Eu-
ropean spectators.

Notwithstanding the ferocity, and apparently in-
satiable appetite of the white shark, it is said they
will not touch a fowl having the feathers on.

In the history of Barbadoes, and in the relations
of voyagers to the South Sea Islands, all that is
shocking in the history of this creature may be
found.

In the records of Aix, a seaport of France, in
the Mediterranean Sea, is the account of a shark,
taken by the fishermen, twentytwo feet long, in
whose stomach, among other undigested remains,
was the headless body of a man, encased in com-
plete armor.

A friend has sent us the following note — for
the truth of which he is ready to pledge his repu-
tation.

" Some years ago, a young gentleman going
passenger to the Island of Jamaica, when near the
port of destination, was drowned. A short time

UARCHARIAS.

after, the uncle of the gentleman was on board a
vessel in that region, the crew of which caught a
large shark. On opening him, a common prac-
tice of sailors, in the stomach they found, among
other things, a gold watch, chain and seals,
which being examined, were at once recognised
by the uncle as the very same he had given his
nephew, at the time of sailing."

The aesophagus of this despot of the sea, is so
capacious, that a full sized man can readily be ta-
ken down whole. We possess, in a collection, the
dried jaws, which, opened, like the clasp of a
purse, will admit the shoulders of an adult person.
This fact, of the width and extensibility of the
throat, has given rise to an opinion that this was
the fish that swallowed Jonah.

But we neither believe, nor infer from the de-
claration in the sacred narrative, any such ridicu-
lous supposition. The words are these, viz : —
" Now the Lord prepared a great fish to swallow
up Jonah." Such is the anatomical structure ol
the teeth, in all the larger varieties of shark, with
which naturalists are conversant, that nothing can
be very conveniently extracted from the stomach,
through the aesophagus, which has once been ad-
mitted there.

Like the entrance of a mouse-trap, there is free
admission, but no possible retreat. This median-

90 SaUALIDES.

ism is particularly necessary in the economy of the
shark, — obliged by the law of its nature to sub-
sist on living animals, — which, were it not for
the singular provision in pointing all the teeth
backward, and the prickly spines in the gullet, di-
rected the same way, would escape almost as soon
as swallowed.

The same mechanical arrangement is noticeable
in the throats of all the serpents : the teeth are
not for mastication, but solely for holding and pre-
venting the escape of the prey. We therefore
place implicit confidence in the biblical account,
that God created a fish, expressly to accom-
plish the miracle of swallowing, and subsequent-
ly ejecting the undutiful prophet upon the dry
land.

Pliny's close observation may be inferred, from
a statement he makes, that the shark turns on its
back to bite, unless it settles over the ob-
ject, — an observation corroborated by succeeding
writers.

The tail being a powerful organ of destruction, as
soon as the animal is drawn on the deck of a ves-
sel, the seamen usually cut it off immediately, with
an axe.

When the skin is nicely manufactured, a kind of
leather is made, called shagreen, used in covering
mathematical and surgical instrument cases.

CARCHAKIAS. 91

Blue Shark, — Carcharias Glaucus. Blue
sharks seem to be universally distributed over the
world : navigators have never penetrated a sea in
which they were not seen. They have a some-
what slender body, of a deep slate blue, on the
back and sides, but the color is considerably light-
er under the pectoral fins and abdomen. They
have, beside, a long, pointed snout, a bilobed tail,
of which the lower one is the longest. Usually,
they average from seven to fourteen feet in length.
Vessels are followed by this shark, sometimes,
hundreds of leagues, without cessation. Seamen af-
firm that it is exceedingly greedy of human flesh.
This opinion has arisen, probably, from the circum-
stance that the species is so widely diffused, that
a body is scarcely lowered into the water, in any
latitude, before some of these voracious Bedouins
of the sea make their appearance.

iElian assures us that when their young are in
danger, they rush down the throat of the mother
for security. The young of this species are hatch-
ed from the egv, in the coiled oviducts of the fe-
male, and therefore, when expelled, are not only
alive, but exhibit, instantly, their natural character,
by seizing with their tiny mandibles, anything
that comes in their way.

To each young one, is suspended, by the um-
bilical cord, a sack, in which is enclosed the yolk

92 SaUALIDES.

of the egg from which they had their being. This
highly nutritious substance is slowly absorbed
through the duct, into the stomach, and finally,
the cord shrinks and drops off.

By the time this curious process is completed,
adverted to in the physiological proem, the teeth
are sufficiently developed to hold the prey they
may overcome. To those who often witness this
appendage to young sharks, in calms, at sea,
this explanation, we trust, will be satisfactory.

During the excessive heat of summer, attracted
by the odor of the floating offals from a port, it is
no uncommon circumstance for them to penetrate
into the docks. Their sense of smell is admitted
to be exceedingly acute, or they never would pursue
vessels for such long periods together, when per-
sons on board are laboring under putrid diseases.
When they have attained the object of pursuit,
by unceasing perseverance, the chase is at once
given up.

Bathing, therefore, in the warm season at low
tide, in the vicinity of wharves, is certainly an ex-
posure, though it may so happen that a series of
years may elapse without any unpleasant occur-
rence from such a source.

A year since, while a lad was fishing in a small
boat, in the outer harbor of Newport, R. I., his

CARCHARIAS. 93

boat was attacked in a most ferocious manner by a
shark. After the first attack, the shark leaped
from the ocean into the boat, which, from his
flouncing he would have sunk, had not another
boat, near at hand, come to the relief of the boy.
With great difficulty the monster was killed.
He measured eight feet in length, was of the most
ferocious kind of sharks, called by mariners man-
eater. He weighed between three and four hun-
dred.

The Newburyport Herald relates an occurrence
which happened in Rowley, not long since. Mr.
David Pickard, who was on the marshes, by a nar-
row creek, near the mouth of Rowley river, saw a
large fish — a shark, as he supposed — making up
the creek, with his back above water. Being pro-
vided with a gun, he discharged it at the creature,
when it made a monstrous leap, and deposited its
huge bulk high and dry upon the land. It meas-
ured nine feet in length.

The following fact, published in 1831, on the au-
thority of Captain Clark, of the brig Stranger,
from St Bartholomews, will corroborate the testi-
mony of naturalists, in relation to what has been
said of the mode of bringing forth its young, — so
different from most other aquatic tribes.

" Having caught a shark, nine feet long, it was
opened on deck, and found to contain fiftytwo

94 SaUALlDES.

young ones — each of which measured seventeen
inches in length, and all were very exactly of the
same size."

During the year 1831, a man was attacked in
his boat by a shark, overcome and devoured ; in
the Bay of Boston.

In "The Life of a Sailor" is a narrative of the
wreck of a vessel off the Havana. The crew took
to the boat, which upset ; they succeeded in right-
ing it, and while two men were bailing with
their hats, a shark was seen to approach. No lan-
guage can convey an idea of the panic which seiz-
ed the struggling seamen. Every man now strove
the more to obtain a moment's safety. Well
they knew that one drop of blood would be
scented by the everlasting pilot fish, the jackall
of the shark ; and that their destruction was inevit-
able, if one only of these monsters should discover
the rich repast, or be led to its food by the little
rapid hunter of its prey.

A few minutes after, about fifteen sharks came
right among them. The boat was again upset
by the simultaneous endeavor to escape danger,
and the twenty two sailors were again devoted to
destruction. At first, the sharks did not seem in-
clined to seize their prey, but swTam in among
the men, playing in the water, sometimes leaping
about and rubbing against their victims. This was

CARCHAR1AS. 95

of short duration. A loud shriek from one of the
men announced his sudden pain ; a shark had seiz-
ed him by the leg, and severed it entirely from
the body.

No sooner had the blood been tasted, than the
dreaded attack took place : another and another
shriek proclaimed the loss of limbs. Some were
torn from the boat, to which they vainly endeav-
ored to cling — some, it was supposed, sunk from
fear alone. The sharks had tasted the blood, and
were not to be driven from their feast. By great
exertion, again the boat was righted, and two men
were in her; the rest had all perished. The two
survivors resolved, with gallant hearts, to redouble
their exertions. They lightened the boat suffi-
ciently not to be overset.

The voracious monsters endeavored to upset the
boat ; they swam by its side, in seeming anxiety
for their prey ; but after waiting some time, they
separated. The two rescued seamen, in spite of
the horrors they had witnessed, soon fell asleep,
and were the next day fortunately picked up by a
vessel.

Fox Shark, or Thrasher, — Carcharias Vul-
pes. Perhaps no class of sea stories are more
common than accounts of combats between the
thrasher and the whale, — the latter of which,
is always said to be beaten most cruelly by the

96 SaUALIDES.

thrasher. We apprehend, however, that there is
some mistake in these supposed battles.

The thrasher may always be known from all
other varieties, by the upper lobe of the tail, which
is as long as the entire body. Generally, the
thrasher averages from nine to fourteen feet. They
are seen on our coast very often, in the summer,
running with great swiftness, — the tip of the long
tail fin cutting the water.

GEN. ZYG^ENA.

Hammer-Headed Shark, — Zygana Vulgaris.
Shovel-headed shark, is another name, by which this
remarkably constructed fish is known to American

HAMMER-HEADED SHARK.

seamen. But little time since, a sailor offered one,
recently caught, for sale, which he wheeled through
the streets of Boston, on a barrow, attracting
crowds of people, who gazed upon it in perfect
wonder.

ZYG£NA. 97

The head, from which particular part it obtains
its vulgar name, is comparatively thin — and re-
sembles, in relation to the body, a brick, laid across
the head of a fish. Such, indeed, is the structure,
that the eyes are ten, twenty, and twentyfive inch-
es apart, according to the size of the body, — pre-
cisely as it respects each other, as it would be if
an eye were placed in each end of the brick.
Without a drawing, however, it is utterly impossi-
ble to form a right conception of its curious form.
The body is brown on the back, — though gene-
rally partaking of the leaden, the prevailing color
of all the sharks.

The species under examination, in writing this
article, has a falcate first dorsal fin, on the rise of
the back, and a second, quite small, near the end
of the tail : — the entire length is short of nine
feet.

Surely, if anything in animal organization,
seems like the result of some sport of nature, the
hammer-headed shark is an instance of it. If the
body of a large flounder, deprived of its head and
tail, were laid across the head of a blue shark, it
would somewhat resemble the gluing on of the
head to the body. The eyes are at such a distance,
that at first view, one is led to suppose it a mon-
strous production.

It has been conjectured that the eyes, from being
7

98 SaUALIDES.

lodged at the extremities of the cartilaginous wings,
as it were, of the skull, can be approximated on
the under side, so that the fish may look into its
own mouth, far back, on the under side, even un-
der the thick substance of the neck. Careful ex-
amination, however, on a recently caught, flexible
shark, convinces us satisfactorily, that no such ef-
fect can be produced.

By some authors, it is called the balance-fish ;
because it is said to balance in the water, as
though the centre of the body were supported on
a pivot, while the head and tail, alternately, as-
cend and descend. Others give the appellation of
sea-mallet, from the resemblance which the body
has to the handle of a mallet, inserted into the trans-
versely laid head. This mallet head is gently
curved in front, and brought quite to an edge, so
that it will cut its way with ease through the water.

The eye very much resembles that of the
horse, being nearly of the same dimensions. In a
dried specimen of a young one, four feet long, the
eyes present a hard shell, showing that they were
calculated for deep water. In the mouth is found
a liberal supply of four rows of teeth, lancet-shap-
ed, and serrated on their edges.

Scarcely a season passes by, in which fine spe-
cimens are not taken in the vicinity of Nahant,
about the Cape, he.

ZYGiENA. 99

In 1805, three powerful shovel-nosed sharks,
were taken in a net, at Sagharbor. The
largest was eleven feet in length. On open-
ing him, many detached parts of a man were
found in the abdomen, which were collected
and buried. A striped shirt, patched, was also
taken from the stomach.

Very opportunely, while writing, Captain Knott
Martin, on a return voyage from Cape Hayti, has
presented us with a fine specimen of a young one
of this species, only two feet and one inch in length ;
one inch and a half in diameter : — the eyes are
five inches apart, and in the flexible jaws is a den-
tal apparatus, truly frightful. There can be no
doubt, from the exhibition of muscular strength,
this shark makes prodigious slaughter in appeasing
its voracious appetite.

Mr Fitzwilliam, an English gentleman, recent-
ly from Malta, has politely forwarded us the fol-
lowing note, with other interesting matter on natu-
ral history, illustrative of the character and habits
of the shovel-nosed shark.

" While lying at anchor near the Bell Buoy, in
the Isle of France, we were surrounded with nu-
merous sharks, of the shovel-nosed species, — two
of which appeared of so enormous a size, that we
determined, if possible, to catch them. Our hooks
were baited with four-pound pieces of pork, but

100 SaUALIDES.

these appeared too small morsels for our voracious
customers, — and for two days we were unsuc-
cessful.

"A young goat happening to die at this time, it
was immediately fastened on a hook for a bait ; it
had not been overboard many seconds, when one
of the sharks was seen to approach, smell of it,
turn on his back, and in a trice, swallow it. After
considerable difficulty, we hoisted this monster on
board, in doing which, with a stroke of his tail, he
shivered the bulwarks near him, into a thousand
splinters ; and it was, indeed, with great difficulty
we despatched him, even though the tail was imme-
diately chopped off to prevent further damage to
the property on deck. He measured eighteen
feet in length.

" It was now suggested, it would be worth while
to bait another hook, with the entrails of the first
captive. In a few minutes the hook was in readi-
ness, and a second shark was taken, which was
longer and larger than the other, to appearance ;
but it was so violent in its struggles, that it suc-
ceeded in snapping off the chain, attached to the
hook, and escaped.

" The jaws of the one we saved, when cleaned,
were so large as to be slipped over the body of a
man. From the liver, alone, were procured more
than ten gallons of oil."

SELACHE 101

Zygcena Tiburo, belonging to this family, hav-
ing warty spots, is also occasionally taken by the
fishermen, — dried specimens of which may be
found in the museums. The color is much like
the one in the preceding article, though, if any-
thing, the head is sharper — and the skin, be-
tween the pectoral fins, near the region of the
branchiae, is of a clear white, — shading into a
yellowish tinge towards the tail.

GEN. SELACHE.

Basking Shark, — Selache Maximus. Be-
tween the head and body, there is not a good
proportion, — the first being comparatively small
and snake like. When the branchial openings
are thrown asunder, from running almost round
the neck, they give the animal the appearance of
having its throat cut by several deep incisions.
The color of the skin is nearly that of sheet lead ;
— one large dorsal fin, shaped like a ploughshare,
rises on the back ; — the teeth are small and sharp,
and in vast numbers. On this coast, they have
been captured, measuring thirty feet, usually the
harpoon is the surest method of securing them.

A few years since, at the time the appearance
of the sea-serpent produced so much excitement
in the vicinity of Gloucester, a party of gentlemen
from Boston, armed for successful combat, with

102 SCIUALIDES.

that emperor of serpents, fell in, we have been
informed, in the course of their excursion, with
one of these harmless, lazy fishes. Its dimensions
were so colossal, as to induce some to believe,
by the aid of a little imagination, that this was the
mighty leviathan, which had been magnified into
a tremendous snake, one hundred feet long. The
existence, however, of such a creature as the ser-
pent has been described to be, by the most unob-
jectionable evidence, is proved as clearly and con-
clusively, as human testimony can establish any
truth.

From a careful examination of the digestive or-
gans, there being an unusually long intestinal tube,
it is conceded by naturalists, that the basking shark
feeds on vegetable food entirely, and therefore,
unless unreasonably excited, is a peaceably dispos-
ed, harmless, inoffensive being.

Beside the track of intestine^ within its calibre,
there is curious provision for retaining the con-
tents, till all the nutritious matter is completely
extracted. This consists of a valve, — or to
make it more clearly understood, the inner
plate is precisely like a winding stair-case, or the .
twist of a screw-auger ; thus, instead of passing
down freely, and unobstructed ; by this arrangement
of the screw, the food is kept rolling over a vast
surface of absorbent vessels.

SELACHE. 103

Because this shark seems to delight in lying
upon the surface, basking in the hot sunshine, the
name of basking shark has been given it, by-
common consent. Though really formidable in
appearance, by the concurrent testimony of mari-
ners, it is allowed to be a dull, unsuspecting, harm-
less creature.

INTESTINE OF THE BASKING SHARK.*

This disposition must depend, to some extent,
on the quality of its aliment, which is altogether
marine plants. How far the habits of this animal

* Stomach of the basking shark laid open, and the coats of
the intestine dissected entirely away, in order to exhibit the
valvular structure within.

A. The cardiac orifice of the stomach.

BB. The converging muscular fibres about the pylorus, or
lower opening of the organ.

C. The commencement of the winding valve, as it is term-
ed, — which is a continuous shelf, like a flight of winding
stairs, jutting from the inner circumference towards the cen-
tre.

D. refers to the width of the valvulae conniventes.

104 SUUALIDES.

will warrant a comparison with the description
that is given in the book of Job, of the Behe-
moth, we leave to others to judge. " Behold
now the Behemoth, which I made with thee ; he
eateth grass as an ox."

That the structure within, is upon the simple
plan of the digestive organs of herbiverous quad-
rupeds, must be admitted by those who study com-
parative anatomy.

Beza, and others, learned in the history of the
sacred writings, contend that the Leviathan, was
a crocodile, which was the opinion of Bochart ;
but we can discover nothing in the description of
that formidable monster, that bears any more re-
semblance to it than the basking shark ; which an-
swers the precise figure of the Behemoth ; in the
whole Bible the word crocodile does not once
occur.

Pennant informs us that they swim with such
rapidity and violence, that there has been an in-
stance of a vessel of seventy tons having been
towed away by one of them, against the wind, by
the irons lodged in its body. It is further said of
the Behemoth, " His bones are as strong pieces
of brass ; his bones are like bars of iron."

As far south as New Jersey, they have been
taken, of greater dimensions, than at the north.
By good authority, we have been told of one or

PLATYSOMI. 105

two, that measured not far from forty feet in
length.

Within the mouth a kind of whalebone is neal-
ed out, which has also given it the name of
the whalebone shark. On the best authori-
ty, it is said they are viviparous, — the young, a
foot long having been taken out of the bodies of
the females. Simply the liver, has weighed a
thousand pounds, in some of the large ones, caught
on the northern coasts of Europe, — yielding a
profitable quantity of oil, for which purpose they
are sought.

Not appearing to be very timid or susceptible,
they will lie perfectly quiet, till the intrepid har-
pooneer, who has approached him cautiously,
drives the instrument of death into the vital regions,
before he begins to move with the warp.

GEN. TORPEDO.

Torpedo — The "Numbing Fish," — Torpedo
Vulgaris. That a variety of this remarkable fish
has been taken on these northern shores cannot
be questioned, though we frankly confess our ina-
bility to procure one. Individuals who have ac-
companied fishing parties, corroborate the testimo-
ny of those who assert that they have drawn up a
strange creature, something like a skate, which
they not caring to preserve, or even handle, in at-

106 PLATYSOMI.

tempting to cut out the hook with a knife, instant-
ly felt a strange sensation in the arm, as though a
cord had been suddenly drawn round it.

As there is a fish known to those who habitu-
ally fish, inshore, for a living, the whole year round,
as the " numbing-fish" or benumbing, it is very
conclusive that it has been seen : — resembling,
somewhat, the skate, it would not be strange if those
who accidentally drew them up, should suppose
it one of them, particularly if it was jerked from
the hook, — a common mode of disengaging the
skate.

THE TORPEDO.

The Electric-Ray, or Topedo, is found in most
of the European seas, but in Torbay, England,
particularly, they are often drawn up in a traul
net, with others; — sometimes they catch the
hook, and then it is, in handling them, that they
exhibit that curious electrical property, which
has given them the name of torpedo.

Icthyologists describe about twenty species of

TORPEDO. 107

the ray, but this, alone, possesses to a consider-
able degree, the electrical property. In structure,
the torpedo does not seem to differ essentially from
the family of rays in general. The electrical or-
gans are lodged each side of the gills, — reaching
to the cartilages of the great fins. Each lateral
battery is about five inches long — being constituted
by plates of membrano-cartilaginous substance,
the interstices of which are filled with a gelatinous
fluid. Their color is a dusky brown, — the skin is
smooth, the tail short, and the mouth small, with
five breathing apertures.

The apparatus of the torpedo, is analagous, in
character, to that of the gymnotus, or electrical
eel of Surinam. In the summer of 1827, Thomas
Trask, Esq. American Consul at Surinam, suc-
ceeded in bringing a live one to Boston, in a
barrel of water. Although we had the best oppor-
tunity, two days in succession, for experiment,
with extreme regret, we were completely un-
successful in getting an electric shock. It was
irritated, — roused with iron as well as wood, but
there was no exhibition of that power which we
hoped to have experienced.

Either the new climate, the different kind of
water in which it was kept, its being changed daily,
or the influence of other causes, deprived it of the
faculty of secreting electricity, or its spirit was so
subdued, that it was indifferent to stimuli.

108 PLATYSOMf.

This eel was a little more than three feet in
length, considerably larger than a man's wrist, and
of a deep slate color. While confined in a vat,
on the eve of sailing, Mr Trask ordered four ne-
groes to go and put it into the barrel, in which we
afterwards saw it, but they were repeatedly pros-
trated to the ground in the attempt, declaring that
their elbows were broken.

General Verveer, a gentleman of great respect-
ability, who resided many years in Surinam, as-
sured us that he once had an electrical eel, of such
extraordinary dimensions, that it was placed in a
trough where the cattle were in the habit of go-
ing to drink, with reference to sending it abroad ;
but some mules being turned loose, went directly
to the spot to drink — and four of them were kill-
ed in succession, the moment their noses touched
the water.

This electricity both in the torpedo and the
gymnotus, is entirely under their control, — and
was probably bestowed on them for the purpose
of overcoming their prey. The eel has no teeth, —
therefore it has a compensation in the wonderful
machine within its own body, by which it can re-
peat the benumbing influence till it has gorged
the victim on which the power has been exerted.
Otherwise, in their habits, they may be considered
in the water what the anaconda is on the land.

RAIA. 109

GEN. RAIA.

Thornback, — Raia Clavata. Notwithstand-
ing the assertions of some to the contrary, others
who have seen the thornback in England, contend
that it has been taken on this coast.

THE THORNBACK.

The body is cineritious, rough, with bony tuber-
cles, — each of which is furnished with a hooked
spine, — the dorsal row being the longest ; the
tail is longer than the body, loaded with three rows
of spines.

Usually, they are from two to three feet long,
when fully grown. We cannot assert positively
that we have seen one, yet we have an indistinct
recollection of such a circumstance, in the deep-
water near Scituate, about eight years ago.

Skate, — Raia Batis. All the borders of
Massachusetts are visited by the skate, some
of which are in breadth as much as four or five
feet, with a brown body, rough skin, — hav-

110 PLATYSOMI.

ing a dirty crust of mucus and mud — and a long
tail : it may always be known to those who seek
it for cabinets.

THE SKATE.

It has five branchial openings on each side,
partly concealed by being underneath ; two
dorsal fins' near the root of the tail ; small teeth,
of a conical form, with broad bases. Males may
be known from the females by crooked or hooked
spines on the pectoral fins. The ova are brown,
cariaceous, and square, having four long arms,
giving the egg-shell, which washes upon the
beach, the appearance of a hand-barrow.

Let it be remembered, that the skate is a broad,
thin, flat fish, terrific and disgusting to look upon,
— possessing the voracity of the shark, with
out its rapidity. Their home is at the bottom,
from which, with singularly constructed optics,

RAIA. HI

they can look upwards on all that passes
over.

Cased in a partially bony shell, its edges seem
to be eked out by broad gelatinous wings, with
which they flap through the water, as a bird uses
its wings, in aerial progression. In shoal, calm
water, we have often seen them lying at ease on
the mud of inlets, varying in size from an inch to
five feet.

During the months of March and April, the fe
males cast their purses, or spawn ; from three to
five hundred eggs, have been extruded from one
of them, at a time. In the Spring, several males
may be seen pursuing one female for hours to-
gether.

Directly before our dwelling, on a warm day in
July, as the tide was receding, an unusual splash-
ing of water attracted attention, and resulted in the
capture of a skate, whose diameter was equal to
that of a wagon wheel. When thrown upon a
wheel-barrow, a strong man could scarcely push
the load before him, to the house.

Skates are in less danger of being destroyed,
than most other fishes, excepting when young.
After having grown to a certain extent, even
sharks appear unwilling to attack them ; — hence
they are exceedingly numerous. Lobster-men
spear the skate, for bait, by boat loads, and in

112 PLATYSOMI.

England, the skirts or wing are considered excel-
lent eating.*

Another reason why sharks do not disturb them,
when they become large ; arises, it would seem,
from a conscious inability to swallow the morsel.
Prowling, says a writer, at the bottom of the ocean,
in the dark caverns beyond the ken of human
vision, and in cavities, dark and horrible beyond
what the imagination rhas ever conceived, they,
perhaps, continue to grow, till they become mon-
sters indeed. As we have no exact knowledge of
the period to which the lives of fishes are pro-

* No city in the world, is better and more plentifully sup-
plied with fish, than London. Turbot and brill are carried
therefrom the coast of Holland ; Salmon from the rivers in
Scotland and Ireland, — a few however are caught in the
Thames, — at the mouth of which mackerel and cod fish are
taken. In 1828, the following calculation was made of the
quantity of fish sold at Billingsgate.

Plaise and skates

Turbot ....

Fresh Cod

Herrings ....

Haddocks ...

Mackerel -

Fresh Salmon -

Lobsters ....

To supply the actual demands of the people with this food,
it required 3,827 vessels ; the number of fishermen, there-
fore, exclusively devoted to this particular business, and sub-
servient to that metropolis alone, is truly immense.

50,754 bushels.

87,958

c

447,130

I

3.336,407

•(

482,493

'

3,076,700

«

- 45,446

u

1,954,600

c

TRYGON. 113

longed, it is fair to conclude, from the vast dimen-
sions of some individuals of this species, that they
may live from one century to another.

A skate was killed in the vicinity of Guada-
loupe, measuring nearly twentyfive feet in length by
fourteen in breadth. This fact leads to the suppo-
sition that others may yet be discovered, by the
side of which this would be a mere pigmy. Time,
perhaps, may yet reveal the secret, that the kra-
ken, now considered an imaginary being, so viv-
idly pictured by bishop Pontoppidan, whose
back, rising above the surface, resembles an island,
is nothing more nor less, than one of these mon-
strous productions.

Sting Ray, — Trygon Pastinaca. Occasion-
ally, but by no means very frequently, the sting-

THE STING RAY.

ray is taken with a hook, in fishing in about thirty
8

114 STURIONES.

fathoms of water. The body is of an oval form,
of an olive color, and smooth. It has a sharp
nose, a small, slender tail, armed with a long ser-
rated bone towards its root. Usually, on these
shores, it averages from one to two feet in length,
and is denominated the saw-tailed skate.

ORDER III. — STURIONES.

GEN. ACCIPENSER.

The fishes of this genus, have the general form
of the sharks; but their body, remarks Mr Park,
is more or less covered by long prominences, in
longitudinal rows. Their eyes and nostrils are
on the side of the head, the dorsal fin behind the
ventrals, and the anal under it. Sturgeons ascend
the rivers from the northern seas, at certain sea-
sons, in vast numbers, and their fishery, therefore,
becomes an object of peculiar importance.

Sturgeon, — Accipenser Sturio, is an anadro-
mous, subtle fish, solitary in its habits, voracious,
and when fully grown, of prodigious size and pow-
er. On this coast, the sturgeon is often seen, leap-
ing from the water, but is not often taken.

ACCIPENSEE. 115

It seems to delight, particularly, in lying about
the estuaries of rivers, into which it frequently pen-
etrates, hundreds of miles, returning to the ocean
again, as the supply of food fails, or the formation
of ice commences, in northern latitudes. Its abid-
ing place is not at sea, but always on the border
of the ocean, where muddy bottoms predomi-
nate.

Without teeth, it snaps at its prey most vigor-
ously, and rarely fails of overcoming the object of
its choice, either by artifice, or dint of extraordi-

THE STURGEON.

nary strength. Between the end of the snout and
mouth are four cirri, resembling the tendrils of a
vine, or earth worms, which the sturgeon exhibits
to other fishes, much to its own advantage.

Belonging to the cabinet of the Boston Society
of Natural History, is the bill or spatula of the
spoon-bill sturgeon, of the Ohio River, which is
really a curiosity. Being divested of the skin, it
presents an osseous blade, three and a half inches
wide, at the further extremity, and two feet and one

116 STUR10NES.

inch long, including some portion of the head, —
gently curved at the end, like a spoon handle.

It is a complete web of bony fibres, running in
every direction, apparently in the wildest confu-
sion, yet its strength and elasticity entirely depend
on this peculiar structure.

Dr Hildreth, of Marietta, says that this is also
called the paddle-nosed sturgeon, — the Polyodon
Feuille of Lacipede, and the Spatularia of some
other writers. The sturgeon from which this
spatula was taken, was speared at Letart's Falls,
in June, 1830, a few miles above Pomeroy's coal
bank, Meig's county, 260 miles below Pittsburg,
and weighed forty pounds.

At the great falls of Lawrenceville, the same
fish is called the bill-Jish. For particulars, see
Silliman's Journal, Vol. xii, No 2.

Settling itself into the soft ooze, with its head
towards the current, — the sturgeon allows the
cirri to float, just above its nose, — and there it
patiently waits, till some fish, allured by the sight
of the buoyant tendrils, — dives to pick them up,
when the crafty deceiver pounces on its unsuspect-
ing prey, with unfailing success.

In summer only, the sturgeon is seen in Boston
harbor, from six to nine feet in length, leaping
from the water. The force with which it propels
itself towards an object on the surface, carries it

ACCIPENSER. 117

completely out. It is said, but with how much
truth, is not easy to determine, that it does not
hesitate to leap out in order to fall on other marine
animals, for the purpose of overcoming them by its
weight. In this way we are continually hearing of
their falling into boats, when the weather is calm.

In the Middletown Conn. Gazette, of July,
1831, is an interesting account of a sturgeon,
weighing one hundred and eighty six pounds,
which unceremoniously sprang into a small boat,
bound from that place to Rocky Hill, and in the
fall broke an oar and one of the seats.

Says the Hartford Courant, in the summer of
1830, — " Last Saturday afternoon, as sundry per-
sons were employed in painting the hull of the
schooner Exact, now lying at our wharf, they
were suddenly interrupted in their labor by an ab-
rupt and unceremonious visit from one of the in-
habitants of the river. They were standing in a
scow which was drawn along side the schooner,
surrounded with their paint-pots, and busily plying
their brushes, when a sturgeon about seven feet
long and three feet in circumference, making his
way between the scow and the schooner, where
there was just room enough to afford a passage,
dashed in among the astonished painters, overturn-
ed the pots, mixed their various contents in one
mass, and having thus formed a new combination

118 STURIONES

of colors, took the business into his own hands.
Substituting his tail for a brush, he commenced
operations on a large scale, and as he flounced
about in his new quarters, scattered the paint in
every direction, spreading it over the side of the
vessel and scow, and not omitting to bestow a lib-
eral coat on the painters themselves. He was not
long permitted, however, to display his skill in his
new line of business, for the painters not relishing
this species of monopoly, commenced a united as-
sault on their new competitor, and despatched him
without mercy."

No account is made of them, as food, owing,
perhaps, in some measure, to their scarcity, in
this vicinity ; but at New York, and particularly at
Albany, they were once esteemed. In Europe,
the sturgeon is much prized, being variously pre-
pared by smoking, pickling and drying.

In this country, the sturgeon fishery appears to
be wholly neglected, though formerly, vast quan-
tities were taken in Virginia. In the cold regions
of Russia, the sturgeon is considered delicious;
thousands upon thousands of tons are salted in bar-
rels for exportation.

The Danube, Volga and Don, are among the
most famous sturgeon localities in the world. We
are assured by a traveller, that a grand dinner can-
not be given in Russia, without sterlet, accipenser

ACCIPENSER. 119

ruthemas, a small species of sturgeon. " When
brought alive in summer, from Archangel to Mos-
cow and St Petersburg, they have been known to
cost from five hundred to a thousand roubles each.
A soup prepared from the sturgeon, commingled
with the most expensive wines, according to the
same narrator, has cost three thousand roubles."

In the time of the Emperor Severus, the stur-
geon was considered so much of a royal dish, that
it was carried to the table by servants adorned with
coronets, and escorted by musicians. This may have
been the origin of a ceremony once practised in Lon-
don, on lord-mayor's day, — the mayor elect be-
ing obliged to present the king or his proxy with
a platter of sturgeon.

In English Law it is still considered as exclu-
sively belonging to the king, — who also is enti-
tled by an ancient, grave, parliamentary conces-
sion, to all whales which may be cast on the sea-
shore of the realm, — to be equally divided be-
tween his majesty and his royal spouse ; — the
head, as the most noble part, being for the king,
and the tail for the queen ; out of which she was
to be supplied with whalebone for making her
stays. This was particularly an unfortunate divis-
ion for her majesty, as the whole of the article in
question is found in the jaws.

The Indians of America used their bones, or

120 STURIONES.

scales, which are exceedingly hard, for rasps and
graters.* Caviare, an excellently flavored, though,
perhaps, rather indigestible food, is made of the
roes, pressed into hard cakes, about one inch
thick, by four square.

During the long Lent of the Greek church, and
the weekly fast days, exceeding in the aggregate,
four months, sturgeon is the principal food of all
European Russia. It was calculated in 1794,
that 1,750,500, yielded 4,366,800 pounds of ca-
viare. Its value as a wholesome food may be in-
ferred from this statement. The estimated value
of the sturgeons caught in Astrakhan and the Cas-
pian Sea, alone, is 1,760,405 roubles annually;
which sum is realized from England, by the sale
of isinglass and caviare, now getting into common
use.

The Persians will not eat sturgeon, but rent the
grounds of the Sallian to the Russians, who in the
spawning time, have taken with a hook and line,
fifteen thousand large sturgeons in one day. These
facts are introduced in this place, with a hope that
they may resuscitate the long neglected, but profit-
able sturgeon fishery at the south.

In our collection, is a small fish, evidently very

* The sturgeon is the largest fish in the Lakes. The stur-
geon of Lake Erie has no dorsal fin, — otherwise it resembles
the sturgeon of the rivers and ocean, and has the same hahit
of leaping or vaulting out of water.

ACCIPENSER. 121

young, that exhibits a relationship to the stur-
geon, and yet, is altogether different. From the
central part of the plates which characterize
the tribe, are strong, short knobs ; a large head,
similarly armed ; prominent eyes, slender fins, and
jaws destitute of teeth.

What is most interesting, between the pectoral
fins is an oval surface, rather prominent, by which
it appears that the fish has the power of adhering
to surfaces, like the remora and lump-fish. This
was taken in a lobster-pot, by the keeper of the
Boston light-house. At a future period it will
be investigated.

CLASS II.

OSSEOUS FISHES.

IN THIS DIVISION THE SCULL IS UNITED BY SUTURES.

ORDER IV.— PLECTOGNATHI.

GEN- ALUTERES.

File Fish. — Aluteres Monoceros, the file fish
of Linnaeus, is scooped up in nets, in calms, about
fifty miles at sea, but under circumstances,
however, which render it doubtful whether it

THE FILE FISH.

can safely be denominated a native fish. It
may be recognised by a bony spine, as one of
the boundaries, anteriorly, of the dorsal fin, and
eight teeth in each jaw.

OSTRACION. 123

Our specimens were obligingly forwarded by-
Captain Couthuoy, of Boston, a gentleman to
whom our naturalists are under peculiar obli-
gations.

GEN. OSTRACION,

All the individuals of the genus ostracion, seem
to be boxed up in a tri-cornered chest, for their
shell is constructed of plates, which unite to form
a perfect shield, — in which there are openings to
allow the exit of the tail. The tail, fins, mouth,
and the branchiae, are the only parts that will ad-
mit of motion.

Trunk-Fish. — Ostracion Triqueter, inhabits
the vicinity of Long Island, New York, but rarely
makes its appearance so far to the north as Mas-
sachusetts, unless driven on shore by the violence
of storms, — and then it is presented as an empty
shell, three sided, about one foot long, with a
white dot near the centre of the hexagonal divisions
or lines which define the original sutures of the
plates. Boys cleanse the inside, and use them
for lantherns, which are very comical contriv-
ances.

Ostracion Bicaudalis. A beautiful specimen
of this fish was thrown on the beach at Holmes's
Hole, within a few months, and forwarded by Dr

124 PLECTOGNATHI.

Yates, of that place, to the Boston Society of
Natural History, in whose cabinet it has been de-
posited.

OSTRACION BICAUDALIS.

The body is marbled, and dotted, as it were,
with black. Near the vent, two spines, are sent
directly backward, on the plane of the abdomen,
whose points approximate a very little ; these
are sharp, stiff, and hooked, much like a canine
tooth. Writers place the locality of this ge-
nus in the Indian seas ; but it is now morally
certain that it also exists in this northern latitude,
as all the specimens which have been cast on land,
could not have been lost by collectors of curiosi-
ties, from homeward-bound vessels. Besides, the
cutaneo-elastic substance which unites the fins,
tail, lips, &z,c.,to parts within the tri-cornered shell,
shows most convincingly that it had not been long
dead.

We possess various smaller specimens, from
Trinidad, but this, compared with them, is vastly
more interesting. It measures not far from four-

D 10 DON. 125

teen inches, and from one ridge or angle, to the
other, three inches, — giving the highest arch
of the back a circumference of nine inches.
They are in their own element, what the armadil-
lo, of South America, is on land.

GEN. DIODON.

Swell-Fish, Balloon-Fish, Blower, Puff-
er, — Tetraodon Turgidus. It is not common
to meet with the swell-fish at any other season,
than the heat of summer. Whenever caught
with the hook, it is in fishing for cod and haddock ;
hence it is inferred that they feed upon similar
food, and swim at about the same depth.

The back has a tawny saffron color, the skin
rough, — riving the sensation to the finder of sand
paper. The only apology we can make for not
having dissected one of them, with reference to
explaining their internal organization, is the poor
one, that there has not been time since the com-
mencement of this essay. Relying, however,
upon the assertions of comparative anatomists, the
following seems to be the peculiarity of its struc-
ture.

A valve is so constructed in the fauces, over
the orifice of a tube, communicating with an ex-
tensive series of air-cells, opening dowmvards,
that by drawing the atmospheric air in at the

126 PLECTOGNATHI.

mouth, it presses the valve down, and thus distends
the cells, but the pressure from behind throws it
back, so that none of it can escape through the
external orifice.

Just as it comes to the surface, it seems to inhale
a prodigious volume of air, that at once swells the
whole body into the shape of a balloon. Before
this, the body is comparatively slender. As the
fish may be rolled about like a foot-ball, bounding
and rebounding, when thrown, precisely in the
same manner; it evidently has not the pow-
er of allowing the air to escape.

If stamped upon, the bursting causes a loud
report. In the sun, the swelling increases so rap-
idly, by the expansive force of the pent up air,
that the skin gives way with a sudden rent, accom-
panied with a loud noise. Thrown upon the wa-
ter, it floats away partly on one side, resembling
at a distance, (the belly being delicately white,) a
white foam.

However, after a while the size begins to lessen,
till finally the fish succeeds in getting under wa-
ter again, and survives the trial. Probably the
temperature of the water has some agency in con-
densing the air, till the valve, or epiglottis, by its
own elasticity, re-acts, and by the openings, per-
mits the confined air to escape.

The swell-fish varies from eight inches to one

LOPHOBRANCH II. 127

foot in length. It appears, in consequence of a
vertical cleft through the middle of the jaws, to
have two large upper and lower front teeth.

ORDER V. — LOPHOBRANCHII.

The branchiae of this order are of a peculiar
character, and well worth the minute examination
of those who desire an accurate knowledge of the
anatomy of fishes. Instead of being pectinated, they
are disposed in tufted pairs on the margins of the
branchial curves. Above these, is the operculum ;
covering and attached all round, but having a for-
amen for the water to pass out through the tufts,
from the mouth.

Such as are found in this section of the country,
are small, four-sided, and harmless. Their eggs
are floated onward through the oviducts, to be
lodged in a little sac, constituted of the common
skin, put upon the stretch, by their presence, un-
der the tail in some, and under the belly in others
— out of which the young escape, when they are
hatched.

GEN. SYNGNATHUS.

Little-Pipe Fish, — $yng?wthus Typhh. As
we have in no instance seen two of these fishes

128 PLECTOGNATHI.

together it is inferred that they are solitary in their
habits, somewhat like the sturgeon — beino- in
some respects sturgeons in miniature.

THE PIPE FISH.

The tube of the mouth is long and slender, at
the extremity of which, is the minute opening of
the mouth. Eighteen plates enter into the com-
position of a hexagonal body, a little larger than a
goose-quill, and thirtysix in the tail, which is
square, but quite flexible.

Their ordinary length is from six to ten inches.
Among the rocks at Nahant, after a storm, at
Cohasset, and at Boston light-house, all our
specimens have been procured. For preserva-
tion, the best mode is to dry them, as they loose
nothing by it, if brushed over by a varnish, in
which there is a mixture of aloes, to prevent the
depredations of insects.

MALACOPTERYTGII. 129

ORDER VI. — MALACOPTER YGII
ABDOMINALES.

All the fishes of this order possess bony skele-
tons ; the jaws are in one piece, and the branchiae
pectinated. All the rays of the fins are soft, except
in some instances, the first of the dorsal or pec-
torals, and the ventrals are posterior to the abdo-
men.

The order includes nearly all the fresh water
fishes, as well as those which migrate periodically
from the ocean to the rivers. It may be said,
with propriety, that most of the edible fishes also
belong to this order. It is divided into five
natural families.

FRESH WATER FISHES.

Thus far we have been considering the fishes,
which are either entirely confined to the ocean,
or are only occasional visitants of the fresh water.
But in the river, there is a race which could not
subsist in the compound element where the great-
est proportion of all the varieties of aquatic animals
known to naturalists, have their residence.

After the most careful examination of the ana-
tomical structure of this class, there is noth-
9

130 FRESH WATER FISHES.

ing discoverable in their external configuration, nor
in the internal organization of the viscera, which
can explain why it is necessary to reside in the
one place or the other, or what obliges them
to alternate from the salt to the fresh water.

Physiology, as yet, has thrown no light on this
subject, which is only another evidence of the lim-
ited knowledge we possess of the wonderful ope-
ration of the laws that govern animal life. The
rationale of the effect of the two kinds of water,
must be sought for in the influence exerted by
certain salts, in solution, on the atmospheric air
with which they are commingled.

In the commencement of this essay, the fact has
been adverted to, that fishes do not breathe either
water or air, exclusively, but a mixture of both.

By the examination of a map of the United
States, or Massachsuetts in particular, it will be ob-
served that the origin of the water-courses in the
country, are such, that by passing over different
soils, in which various ores and other mineral pro-
ductions are directly exposed to the action of the
stream, they become impregnated or altered in
quality, according to the distance they run to-
wards the sea.

Particular families are fitted by the All- Wise
Creator, to exist in particular regions, and at par-
ticular localities ; — and they are endowed with a

FRESH WATER FISHES. 131

kind of vitality to resist the noxious qualities of
the fluid in which they swim, that would be fatal
to others. This curious arrangement in the plan
of creation is most admirable, — contributing to
the universal diffusion of animals over the whole
globe.

There is not a spot of land on earth, nor a pool
on the face of it, that is not teeming with its count-
less millions of organized beings, possessing all the
necessary apparatus for supplying their physical
wants, and for propagating their species. But the
boundaries by which the animal creation is re-
strained, are not so arbitrary that no deviations are
allowable : — the fish, or the quadruped, like
man, can change its residence, — and by being
gradually climated, the function of the vital organs
become accommodated to the condition of a mod-
ified element.

Here then, we can find the origin of the crea-
tion of new genera ; — in the meeting of strangers,
and in the aerial and aqueous influences effected
on the offspring.

We have long entertained the opinion, that the
sea is the natural habitation of all fishes. By
the wandering habits of some, the fleeing of
others from their enemies, and the operation
of physical causes, they became gradually dis-
persed in the tributary waters of the great reser-
voir of the world.

132 FRESH WATER FISHES.

To the same causes are also to be attributed the
annihilation of species, now only found in a fossil
state. Even the hardest rocks present the most
perfect forms of extinct fishes — under the name of
ichthyolites. Nor can it be doubted that chang-
es are continually going on in the constitution of
inorganic matter, which, while it blots wholly from
existence distinct tribes, will also eventuate in the
production of entirely new species.

To settle down in the iron-bound notion that
the laws of nature are thoroughly understood, and
that there cannot be anything new presented un-
der the sun, is to confess our perfect ignorance of
phenomena of the most astonishing character. Like
the inexhaustible capacity of the human mind for
knowledge, are the resources of nature, yet men
too often complain that all the avenues to the
study of Natural History have been travelled, all
countries surveyed, and all the animal creation
minutely pictured and anatomised, and that noth-
ing remains to excite them to study, or compen-
sate for the labor of investigation.

Alas ! this is only an excuse for indolence —
and thus thousands live, only to occupy space,
without interesting others, or being enlightened
themselves, and die at last, as they lived, without
contributing one valuable idea to the storehouse of
useful knowledge.

FRESH WATER FISHES. 133

If one new fact can be added to the common stock
of truth, it matters not whether it regards the one
kind of science or another : — the accumulation, the
increase of the capital, is what concerns every indi-
vidual in the community. These remarks are made
with a view to exciting particular attention to the
study of the aquatic animals in the northern states.
Every man, whose eyes are constructed upon com-
mon principles, has discovered something in the
habits and character of the class of vertebrated an-
imals we are considering, which is of real conse-
quence, but unless more disposition is manifested
to concentrate observations, it will be a long while
before we shall have embodied, any correct views
of the reptiles or fishes of the New England
States.

Strange as it may appear, the first land settled
by our European ancestors, as profusely peopled
with these tribes as any section of the American
Continent, is the least known to men of sci-
ence.

FAMILY I. SALMONIDES.

In this family, the body has scales ; — there
are two dorsal fins, but the second is flexible, in
consequence of being destitute of bony spines.

134 SALMONIDES.

GEN. SALMO.

Salmon, — Salmo Salar. The upper jaw is
larger than the lower, and in the males the under
jaw is curved upward. The back has a bluish
shade, the sides are silvery white below ; and
above the lateral line, are irregular, dark spots.
On the tongue, which is white and cartilaginous,
are teeth ; and the scales are striated.

So perfectly well known is the salmon, that it
is quite needless to enter into any further details
than those which relate to the salmon fishery, or
tend to illustrate the character of this highly valua-
ble tribe.

Probably the Connecticut has been more distin-
guished for this fish, than any other river in Mas-
sachusetts, but they are becoming more and more
scarce, from year to year. Locks, steamboats,
the common business of navigation, and above
all, increasing settlements, conspire to interrupt
the progress of the salmon towards the head
waters.

Still, however, they overcome great artificial ob-
stacles, such as dams, he. by their muscular dex-
terity, which would almost discourage the perse-
vering industry of man.

Formerly, in the month of April, they passed
up the Connecticut to its highest branches, leap-

SALMO 135

ing cataracts, where the weight and velocity of the
water was to be overcome by the instantaneous
exertions of the muscles of the tail. They have
been sometimes seen to make several attempts,
before they succeeded in ascending the fall.

While running up rivers, they are fat and
delicious food, from May till the last of June ; af-
ter that period, having deposited their spawn,
they return to the sea, lean and emaciated.*

The St Lawrence has yielded immense supplies,
but they are decreasing, gradually, in a ratio cor-
responding with the increase of population. In
very hot weather, they are extremely annoyed,
while in salt water, by an insect, burrowing in the
skin, called the salmon-louse.

On old salmon they have been so numerous as
to kill them. The fact is well established, that sol-
itary salmon run up rivers, as the seine-men say,

* Wm. Laddj Esq. of Minot, Me. addressed the author the
following note.

* Some years ago, Governor King, of Maine, showed me a
phial containing the roes which had been taken out of a salm-
on, caught at sea, late in the autumn. They were about as
large as peas. He informed me that a fisherman had brought
him the spawn to convince him that the salmon did not spawn
in our fresh water rivers, but followed the fishes that did, for
the sake of their spawn. The Governor, and all the rest of the
company, appeared to be convinced that the salmon do not
spawn until after they leave our rivers."

136 SALMONIDES.

out of season; that is, come back the last of Sep-
tember and October, and for the purpose, it is
thought, to rid themselves of their troublesome as-
sociates, which are known to die as soon as the
fish has been a few days in fresh water.

In the rivers of Kamschatka, they are numer-
ous beyond all example, — even blocking up the
small rivulets into which they wedge themselves,
in trying to pass by the untold thousands on the
route. Such multitudes are "thrown upon the
banks, by the pressure of the moving armies, and
left to die, that were it not for bears and dogs,
their bodies would create a pestilence. Such is
their antipathy to, or fear of everything red, that
before they can be caught successfully, in the
rivers of this country, the fishermen are said to di-
vest themselves of their red caps and shirts.

Captain Charles Kendall, a respectable and in-
telligent navigator of Boston, assured us that when
on the northwest coast of America, within a few
years, he stood in a small stream which came leap-
ing down the crags of a mountain, in which these
delightful fishes were urging their way in such as-
tonishing crowds, with hardly water enough to
cover their backs, that he stood with an axe, and
killed hundreds of them as they passed between
his feet.

He saw birds of prey dive down from the long

SALMO. 137

branches of trees that waved over the waterfalls,
and pick out the eyes of several at a time, before
they flew back to their resting place. Jewett's
travels confirm his statement.

To those who are not particularly conversant
with the natural history of the northwest coast, as
given us by veritable travellers, the foregoing ac-
count may appear overcharged, but it is substanti-
ated by all the voyagers who have remained
there any length of time.

The salmon is found on the coasts of Europe,
from Spitzbergen, quite to Western France, says
a writer in the Conversations Lexicon, but is nev-
er seen in the Mediterranean. On the western
shores of the Atlantic, it is found from Greenland
to the Hudson, but is exceedingly rare in the lat-
ter river, and never penetrates farther south.

They also abound in Eastern Asia, where, as
well as in the United States, they grow to the
weight of ten or fifteen pounds, and often four
feet in length, in the clear, cold rivers of the
north.

As the ice melts away in the spring, they rush
to the rivers, from the ocean, and it is an undenia-
ble fact, confirmed by successful experiments, that
they visit as far as possible, the very streams in
which they were born. Usually, when undisturb-
ed, they swim slowly in immense bodies, near the

138 SALMONIDES.

surface, yet they are so timid, that if suddenly
frightened by a great splashing in the water, the
whole column will turn directly back towards the
sea.

It has also been proved, by actual calculation,
that a salmon can scud at the surprising velocity
of thirty miles an hour. The young are about
twelve inches in length, when they visit the
sea for the first time. After the parent fish have
passed up the rivers, the spring following, the
young ones follow at a respectable distance, hav-
ing grown about six inches.

At the end of two years, they weigh five, six
and seven pounds ; and at the expiration of six
years they have attained their ordinary dimen-
sions. A few of these fishes are carried to Phila-
delphia, but the Boston and New York markets
are supplied, principally, by the packet-men from
the State of Maine.

The Salmon Fishery of Newburgh, on the river
Tay, in Scotland, once produced a net rental of
seven thousand pounds sterling per annum. Very
numerous small fisheries on the same river, belong-
ing to small proprietors, pay three hundred pounds
annually.

On the river Ness, in Scotland, the Salmon
Fishery has risen in value, in eleven years, from
two hundred to twelve hundred pounds a year.

SALMO. 139

Salmon are known to change their haunts ; in
many rivers in which they were formerly so abun-
dant, that "farmer's servants stipulated to have
them only twice a week as food,"1 not one is now
to be found.

THE SALMON.

They were formerly abundant in the Thames,
and caught in great numbers, but since the in-
troduction of steam-boats on this river, they
are rarely to be found.

In some rivers of England and Wales, at the
season when the salmon and their fry return* to
the sea, the quantity taken in one week has ex-
ceeded thousands in a day, and in some instances
in such quantities that they were given to the
swine.

At Leixlip, in Ireland, is a very high cataract,
called the Salmon-leap, from the number of
these fish which are to be seen leaping it, in
the season when they return up the river to
spawn. In fine weather, says a friend, " I have

140 SALMONIDES.

seen them springing up these falls by scores, and
rarely have seen one miss its aim"

The otter is a great destroyer of these fish, and
is a perfect epicure, after catching one, — he only
bites out a piece between the head and the shoul-
ders, and leaves the remainder. " I have seen,"
" says the same gentleman, " ten or twelve
dead salmon floating down the river Tay, in the
highlands of Scotland, in one morning, all of which
had been bitten in this way by the otter, and what
is very remarkable, these fish are always fat and
in prime condition.

" Many of the poor cotters residing near the
streams and rivers of the highlands of Scotland
and Wales, subsist, in a great measure, in the sea-
son, upon these fish, which they pick up early in
the morning, as they float down the stream from
the otters' haunts."

Salmon Trout, — Salmo Trutta. As we have
particularly devoted a considerable number of pa-
ges to the subject of angling, in which a reference
is made to all the varieties of the fresh and salt
water trout, known to the naturalist or the scien-
tific angler, in New England, it is our apology in
this place, for not being more minute and elabo-
rate in the following description.

Nothing, therefore can be more perplexing than
attempting a classification : they have one com-

SALMO. 141

mon origin, — are all descendants of the same
parents, but by living in different places, the one is
large, another small, — another spotted, and an-
other tinned with £old.

This fish has brown spots, some of which, on
the upper portions of the body, are surrounded by
a beautiful bright halo, of a semi-metallic lustre.
On the sides and abdomen, a silvery hue predomi-
nates. Even when cooked they may be known
from the exclusively fresh water trout, by the red-
ness of the flesh.

It is caught at the mouths of rivers and small
streams communicating with the ocean, but as it
cannot endure the extremely salt water, there are
few good localities for them on the line of this
state. The salmon trout has so much the appear-
ance of the salmon, and so much resembles it in
character, that the description wThich has been
given of one, very nearly describes the other.

Allusion is made to this fish in the Sal-
monia, as affording considerable sport, but we
do not possess the faculty of interesting the mere
sportsman, an attempt at which, after a man so
eminently distinguished as the author, would be
downright absurdity.

Common Trout. — Salmo Fario. There is
not a river, nor running stream in the northern

142 SALMONIDES.

states, which has not the common trout, as it is
called, by every body, and yet, on examination,
the external characteristics are as different as pos-
sible ; but the difference consists in the arrange-
ment of spots and color, rather than in the organ-
ization of the branchiae or disposition of the fins. If
we go to the lakes, still farther to the north, they
also have the common trout, which, compared with
the river trout, are codfish by the side of minnows.
This difference in complexion and size, is brought
about in the opinion of the learned author just quo-
ted, by the quality and quantity of food, the wa-
ter, &ic. ; — these developments, whatever they
may be, " are transmitted to the offspring, and
produce varieties which retain their characters as
long as they are exposed to the same circumstan-
ces, and only slowly lose them."

FRESH WATER TROUT.

Plenty of good food gives a silvery color and
round form to fish, and the offspring retains these
characters. Feeding much on larvae, and on shell-
fish, thickens the stomach, and gives a brighter

SAL MO. 143

yellow to the belly and fins, which become hered-
itary characters."

Like the adult children of one family, one is
tall, another is a dwarf, a third is fat, a fourth has a
dark complexion, a fifth has red hair, a sixth blue
eyes, — the seventh excellent front teeth, — the
eighth good grinders, but imperfect incissors, the
ninth is lean, and the tenth differs from all the rest
— and yet they sprang from the same parents, —
the same blood circulates in their veins, at one ta-
ble they subsist on the same food, — and still no
two present the same external character, but why
they do not, is a mystery wholly beyond elucida-
tion ; such is precisely the case with the fresh wa-
ter or semi-marine trouts.

England is famous for its trout, and for the va-
riety too, but after all, we have in the United
States an equally imposing catalogue, under differ-
ent names.

But to the point ; — the common trout of Mas-
sachusetts is from eight to twelve inches long, —
dotted on the back, with brownish spots, — shaded
by a paler circle. On the gill covers is a broad
spot ; the under jaw is the longest ; the soft rayed
fins tinged with yellow, and on the sides of the
body are red spots.

Hunchen Trout, — Salmo Hucho. Resem-

144 SALMONIDES.

bling very much the sea-trout, it is found, on care-
ful inspection, to be more slender, and to have a
greater number of red spots. The back is dusky ;
the ventral fin has a yellow tinge ; all the others
are of a palish purple.

The tail is forked, and the fish measures some-
times four feet, though, ordinarily, it is only about
two, and caught by the hook. This trout certain-
ly exists in the large rivers and ponds in the inte-
rior, but deteriorated in size. They are brought from
New Hampshire, in the winter, frozen for the mar-
kets ; and from the northern parts of Maine, where
specimens have been taken, large as any produced
in the great rivers of Europe.

We subjoin an extract from the Salmonia,
touching the hunchen or huco trout, with the be-
lief that it will lead to further investigation.

" The hucho is the most predatory fish of the
salmo genus, and is made like an ill-made trout,
but longer and thicker. He has larger teeth, more
spines in the pectoral fins, a thicker skin, a silvery
belly, and dark spots only on the back and sides.
I have never seen any on the fins. The ratio of
his length to his girth, is as 8 to 18, or, in well-fed
fish, as 9 to 20 ; and a fish, eighteen inches long,
by eight in girth, weighed 16,215 grains. Anoth-
er, two feet long, and eleven inches in girth, and
three inches thick, weighed four pounds two oun-

SALMO. 145

ces and a quarter. Another twenty six inches
long, weighed five pounds and five ounces.

" Of the spines in the fins, the anal has nine, the
caudal twenty, the ventral nine, the dorsal twelve,
the pectoral seventeen : having numbered the
spines in many, I give this as correct. The fleshy
fin belonging to the genus is, I think, larger in
this species, than in any I have seen.

" Block, in his work on fishes, states that there
are black spots on all the fins, with the exception
of the anal, as a character of this fish : and Profes-
sor Wagner informs me he has seen huchos with
this peculiarity ; but, as 1 said before, I never saw
any fish with spotted fins, yet I have examined
those of the Danube, Save, Drave, Mur and Izar ;
perhaps this is peculiar to some stream in Bava-
ria, yet the huchos in the collection at Munich
have it not. The hucho is found in most rivers,
tributary to the Danube, — in the Save and Lay-
bach rivers, always ; yet the general opinion is
that they run from the Danube, twice a year, in
spring and autumn.

" I can answer for their migration in spring, hav-
ing caught several in April, in streams connected
with the Save and Laybach rivers, which had ev-
idently come from still, dead water, into the clear
running streams, for they had the winter leech, or
louse of the trout upon them; and T have seen
10

146 SALMONIDES.

them of all sizes, in April, in the market, at Lay-
bach, from six inches, to two feet long ; but they
are much larger, and reach thirty or forty
pounds.

" It is the opinion of some naturalists, that it is
only afresh water fish, yet this I doubt, because
it is never found beyond certain falls — as in the
Traun, the Drave and the Save ; and there can be
no doubt it comes into these rivers from the Dan-
ube ; and probably, in its largest state, is a fish of
the Black Sea.

"Yet, it can winter in fresh water, and does not
seem, like the salmon, obliged to haunt the sea,
but falls back into the warmer waters of the great
rivers, from which it migrates in spring, to seek a
cooler temperature and to breed. The fishermen
at Gratz, say they spawn in the Mur, between
March and May. In those I have caught at Lay-
bach, which, however, were small ones, the ova
were not sufficiently developed to admit of their
spawning in spring.''

We think there cannot remain a shadow of
doubt, after comparing these notes, with the great
trout of the cold ponds in Maine and New Hamp-
shire, as well as with the degenerated representa-
tive of the family in the rivers and ponds of Mas-
sachusetts, that they approximate the true hucho
of the Danube. It is very certain, too, that by be-

OSMERUS. J47

ing kept entirely from the ocean, it improves both
in flavor and magnitude ; this, however, seconda-
rily, depends on the extent of the ponds.

We cannot but express our astonishment that
gentlemen owning estates on which there are fine
basins of water, do not stock them with trout,
which can be as easily done, as they can stock
their lands with cattle and horses, and they can be
as choice, too, in the quality; Surely, in this
country, it is yet an untried source of domestic
economy.

GEN. OSMERUS.

Smelt, — Osmerus Eperlanus, called also Spar-
ling. Were not every body familiar with this
beautiful little fish, it would be worth while to
dwell on its character and biography, more particu-
larly than will be attempted. Under the microscope,
the skin is so exceedingly delicate, that the circu-
lation of the blood may be seen, coursing its way
through the cutaneous vessels.

There have been writers who consider the
smelt as the fry of the sea-trout, and others, the
young of some other fish of greater size ; but after
all, the smelt very certainly remains the same from
year to year. The smelt of Massachusetts resem-
bles that of Europe, but still, there is a variation
in the number of rays in the fins.

148 SALMONIDES.

At the south, there is a variety, called menidea,
which has twentyfour rays in the anal fin. In the
month of March and April they cast their spawn,
after which they seem to stretch out into the
ocean, till the approach of autumn, when the har-
bors swarm with them. They pass into rivers and
creeks, but the borders of the salt water is their
peculiar residence, and where they are caught
through the winter, or indeed, in all inlets, where
the sea-water sets at high tide, in immense quanti-
ties.*

An attempt has been made to climate the smelts
in a fresh water pond, but they have soon degene-
rated, becoming at first emaciated, and disappear-
ed, by degrees, till they probably all died.

FAMILY II.

One of the distinguishing characters of this fam-
ily is, that they are destitute of an adipose fin ; the
upper jaw is formed in the middle by intermaxilla-
ries, without pedicles. The body is scaly — and
they have besides, the air-bladder and caecums ; the
branchial arteries are furnished on the side next to

* We are inclined to the opinion that smells shed their scales
annually, in the month of March.

CLUPEA. 149

the mouth, with comb-like teeth ; on the under
edge of the body the scales form a serrated
ridge.

Common Herring, — Clupea Harengus. Head
and mouth compressed, — the latter, rough, with-
in ; jaws short and unequal ; — the upper one
having serrated mystaces, short tongue, quite rough :
— inverted teeth, eyes round, gills setaceous ; gill
covers sometimes of three, and sometimes four
plates ; gill membrane eight rays ; — body some-
what compressed, and covered with small sized
scales ; ventral fins commonly with nine rays ; the
tail forked.

The name herring, is derived from the Ger-
man word heer and army, in reference to the mi-
gration of herring, in such astonishing numbers,
as to excite the wonder of both ancient and mod-
ern naturalists.

In the United States, herring are taken in large
quantities, but the kind peculiar to Massachusetts
particularly, seems to be the clupea harengus,
(pseudo), — though most of the varieties found in
Europe, are also recognised on the atlantic shore
of North America.

The common edible herring of this state, haren
gus, is of an ash color, — approximating a green-
ish blue : the belly and sides have a silvery hue ;

150 SALMONIDES.

under jaw a trifle the longest ; — head quite small.
When cured, they are unfortunately considered
inferior to the European. But this is a mistake,
founded on prejudice.

The herring of this country, carefully preserv-
ed, is no wise inferior to those of other countries.
They are caught in variously constructed nets, in
most of the rivers and fresh water streams, which
are so connected with the sea that the tide wa-
ter sets several miles up their channels.

This tribe of fishes, so far as regards number,
if we credit the assertions of writers, very much
exceeds all others put together. In the northern
seas, inaccessible to many other beings, they have
an oceanic metropolis of their own, where they
multiply beyond all human computation.*

Nature seems to have created them expressly
to become the food of the many monsters of the
deep ; as bread is the staff of life for man, so are
herring the food on which the unnumbered crea-
tures of the sea mainly depend. It has been com-
puted, that if a single herring were permitted to

* Pennant's idea of the migration of herring, to the Polar
Sea, is generally questioned by writers since his day ; but
circumstances to which it is unnecessary to allude here, in
conjunction with the testimony of navigators, in our humble
opinion, amply sustain his assertions.

CLUPEA. 151

multiply in its characteristic manner, together with
its offspring, for twenty years, their united bodies
would ten times exceed the bulk of our globe !

Although this may be considered a wild calcu-
lation, resting, however, on the authority of a for-
eign calculator, there is probably a nearer approx-
imation to truth, than we are ready, at first view,
to admit.

Herring are certainly anadromous, though their
migrations may have been over-rated. Their
taking, it is said, the regular circuit of the sea, gives
additional interest to their history. One immense
army leaves the polar regions, in the spring, equal-
ling in extent the whole surface of Great Britain.

As they advance, squadrons begin to separate
from the main body ; these average from four to
six miles in breadth, — and in length, cannot be
measured by the eye. An astonishing representa-
tion arrives at the Shetland Islands, in June. By
September, England, Ireland and Scotland, are
surrounded by them. From these parts, the forces
move southwest, — cross the atlantic, and make
their appearance on the coast of Georgia, about
the last of January ; detachments then begin to
move eastward, till, ultimately, the whole North
American seaboard is lined with them.

When the length of sea-coast bordering the Unit-
ed States is recollected, — about three thousand

152 SALMONIDES.

miles ; — and it is also considered that millions
and millions are annually taken by the fishermen ;
— and in connexion with these facts, it is admit-
ted that thousands are swallowed at a mouthful by
whales, — several species of which follow the
herring in all its migrations, to destroy it ; — the
havoc made on their phalanxes by other fishes
and marine monsters, — and yet their numbers
appearing undiminished ; — with all these facts,
can any man in his senses, doubt for a moment,
the relations of naturalists.

In direct opposition to the foregoing remarks,
the migratory character of the herring is ques-
tioned by some very late writers, who suppose it
remains through the winter at no great distance
from the shore, or plunges into the deepest parts
of the ocean, or burrows in the mud, to rise at the
spawning season. All this appears both unphilo-
sophic and irrational.

In the first place, herring are rarely caught at
sea, unless a shoal, pursued by a whale, drives
them out of their course. Moreover, it has been
asserted, that wherever found, they invariably
keep at a certain distance from the sun.

Secondly, they have not the organization for
living in mud or filth of any kind. Thirdly, they
are physically prevented from sinking into very
deep w?ater, by the structure and development of

CLUPEA. 153

the air-bladder. Their very form, viz. — sharp
body, flat head, broad fins, and large air-sack,
shows most clearly that they were designed to run
near the surface, and to be always in mo-
tion.

We have therefore, much more confidence in
the relations of the old writers, on this subject,
than in modern upstart theorists.

Herring are supposed to feed on sea-worms,
and the young fry of such fishes as come in their
way. When taken from the water, they die in-
stantly, hence the vulgar proverb — " dead as a
herring."

The herring fishery, as a source of industry and
wealth, has long since, in various kingdoms of Eu-
rope, been considered of national importance.
From the last of June till late in November, they
contain roe ; but after that period, begin to deposit
their spawn, and are then considered less whole-
some, and less valuable.

This fish, variously prepared, has been esteem-
ed, as an article of food, from the remotest anti-
quity. Holland, particularly, was the country in
which they most excelled in this fishery. Many
years since, it was supposed that rising of 150,000
persons, were devoted solely to the trade of tak-
ing and curing of herring.

One Guillaume Beuchel, a native of Brabant, in

154 SALMONIDES.

the fourteenth century, discovered a mode of pick-
ling them, which was considered so remarkable,
and of so much importance, that the Emperor
Charles V., one hundred and fifty years after-
wards, honored his grave with his royal person,
and ate pickled herring on the green grass that
waved above his bones !

Some idea may be formed of this branch of in-
dustry, abroad, by the following relations, viz. —
Yarmouth, in England, is the herring mart of
Great Britain, at which place, upwards of sixty
thousand barrels are annually caught and cured.*

We are credibly informed, that eighty years ago,
four hundred thousand barrels were annually ex-
ported from different parts of Norway. Sweden
exports the oil of herring, to the quantity of
sixty or seventy thousand barrels yearly. This
fishery has been often called the Dutch Gold

* By the corporation charter of the city of Norwich, Eng-
land, the Mayor has to present to the King annually a herring
pie. This custom is necessarily practised up to the present
day. The pie has a standing crust, modeled in exact repre-
sentation of Norwich Castle, and filled with herring.

The origin of this clause in the charter, arose from
the fact, that the city, many centuries ago, now many miles
inland, was the port to which the fishermen brought their her-
ring, caught on the coast, but in consequence of the sea reced-
ing and new land forming, Yarmouth has grown into existence,
and now become the port to which the fish are brought and
cured, and Norwich has become an inland city.

CLUPEA. 155

Mine, in allusion to the riches that nation has
drawn from it.

The law has been so well observed, as it re-
spects the curing and packing, in that country,
that their reputation has given them almost the
complete control of foreign markets.

The late Dr Mease, of Philadelphia, consider-
ed the subject of the herring fishery of such na-
tional interest, many years since, that he abridged
a pamphlet written by the Earl of Dundonald on
the subject, with a hope of awakening the people
of the United States to a realizing sense of the in-
exhaustible source of wealth the ocean presented
in the herring fishery.

The Dutch law obliges the fishermen to sepa-
rate the herring caught in one night, from those
taken in another. None are allowed to be ship-
ped after the 15th of July. No herring are to
be sold on any consideration, till they have re-
mained ten days in pickle : — and the law also
compels the fishermen to complete the curing pro-
cess within three weeks after they arrive in port,
and lastly, to repack them. Salted in barrels —
four barrels of salt are to be put to every twelve of
fish. The law even says they shall be packed alter-
nately, lengthwise and crosswise ; and lastly, no
salt but such as actually comes from St Ubes, shall
be used.

156 SALMONIDES.

The laws both in England and Scotland, as they
regard the packing and sale, are exceedingly
strict, and even vexatious.* Massachusetts has
enacted many laws, from time to time, on the
same account ; but the Legislature has been par-
ticularly distinguished, in imitation of the moth-
er country, for enactments for the preservation
of species, as though the race were in danger
of being exterminated, unless immediately pro-
tected by the conservatory powers of the General
Court.

In Portugal, in order to encourage the rearing
of cattle, the law forbids the killing of calves — or
the sale of veal ; and further declares that
eating eggs, is really detrimental to the raising of
poultry ! With a degree of wisdom, worthy of
Portugal, the English Parliament ordains that a
ship of war shall cruise among the fishermen
on the coast of Scotland, to preserve the breed of
herring ! The duty of the officers is specially to
inspect the nets, and to seize such as have meshes
less than one inch square, — the object of the law
being intended to allow the little young ones to
make their escape ! In the " Philosophical Trans-
actions" for 1767, it is clearly stated, that the
average number of eggs in a herring, is 36,969.

* Appetits are half-cured herrings, prepared in France.
They are alsocalled bouffees, or swelled herrings.

CLUPEA. 157

It is needless to advert to the many laws enact-
ed by the Legislature of this Commonwealth, for
the protection of the alewives in Taunton Great
River ; as well as other species of edible fish, pecu-
liar to the rivers directly communicating with the
sea-board.

Such laws have never been, nor can they be, of
the least possible advantage ; the combined forces
of the United States, in battle array, could not les-
sen their apparent numbers, — and it would be ut-
terly impossible to exterminate the species.

Therefore, all such protecting laws are perfect-
ly useless, unphilosophical, and at variance with
that grand scheme of nature which provides for
the necessities of all organized beings, and sustains
the existence of their species, under all changes,
incidents and circumstances.*

Such portions of the fishery laws as immediately
affect the process of curing, and punishes frauds
in the weight and sale, are both reasonable and
righteous.

Dams, break-waters, he. across rivers, are the
results of civilization, and fishes may forsake the
streams where they once instinctively deposited
their roes : — but their loss is trifling, at any par-
ticular locality, when compared with the advanta-

* Du Cange mentions aquatia, the right of fishing three
days in the year, in the middle ages.

158 S ALMONIDES.

ges arising from the improvements of their solita
ry haunts. As animals recede before the inroads
of civil life, so do the fishes, and no human laws
can restrain them.

Menhaden, Bony-Fish, Hard-Head, Mars-
banker, or Pauhagen, — Clwpea Menhaden.
All these mean the same fish. Perhaps the best
history of the menhaden, is that by Latrobe, in
the fifth volume of the Philadelphia Transactions.
The great whale, Balama Mysticetus make them
a favorite food.

THE MENHADE1T.

Dr Mitchell was informed' by whalemen, that
when this monster gets into a shoal of menhaden,
his under jaw being spread, he gathers in several
hogsheads at a mouthful, which can only enter the
small swallow of the whale, one by one. In the
various bays and inlets of Massachusetts, such vast
shoals of the menhaden are taken, that besides be-
ing smoked for food, far greater numbers are dis-
tributed over the fields for manure.

CLUPEA. 159

From July to the last of August, the borders
of the sea swarm with them. Lynn Bay, partic-
ularly, is said to be a favorite place of their resort.

The usual length of the menhaden, is from ten
to fourteen inches ; gill cover large ; one black-
ish spot on the neck, quite near the operculum ;
tail forked ; belly serrated ; back arched ; mouth
and tongue destitute of teeth ; color dusky, hav-
ing a slight shade of green ; gill membrane eight
rayed.*

As before remarked, the menhaden, amongst
the older class of fishermen, towards New Hamp-

* On a fine sunny sabbath, in 1831, a servant picked up a
very large pauhagan, in a gravel walk, at the top of a hill,
near the author's house, which was actively thrashing about
the small stones with its tail. He brought it into the kitchen
— but in the course of his own examination, however, before
he arrived, it appeared to be dead. It was severely wounded
in the side, as though it had been stabbed through and through
with a bodkin. Being put in a pan of water, to be washed,
it so happened that our attention was called another way,
for an hour or two, but to the great surprise of the house, the
fish was swimming about as well as the dimensions of the ves-
sel would allow. The same fish is now in our collection. In
the course of an hour, the servant discovered that a fish-hawk
was perched on a signal staff over the very spot where he
picked it up, with another in its talons. This explained the
mystery of its visit on dry land. Probably the hawk inadver-
tently dropped it, only a few moments after it was caught.
They are commonly used for bait in the inshore cod-fishery
and not for food, when fresh.

160 SALMONIDES.

shire and Maine, bears the Indian name of Pauha-
gen, which it has been suggested in the notes upon
" gadus tom-codus" is the aboriginal appellation.
Yet the New York icthyologist expressly says that
menhaden is the name by which the aborigines
called " him" Notwithstanding this declaration,
we have good reasons for supposing that menhaden
is a corruption of pauhagen. However, the ori-
gin of the name is of little consequence, and there-
fore, we resign the field to those who may have
more leisure for the investigation.

Shad, — Clupea Alosa. This has a sloping
head ; body tapering towards the tail ; under jaw
longer than its fellow ; teeth small and sharp ; dor-
sal fin nearly in the centre, — the middle rays the
longest ; pectoral and ventral fins quite small ; ab-
domen sharp and serrated ; tail forked ; back a
dusky blue ; — has a line of dark spots on each
side ; varying from four to ten. Another, called
the American shad, clupea capadissima, is without
spots ; — has large scales ; snout not cloven.

The shad is a valuable fish, always commanding
a ready market in New England. It bears so much
resemblance, in general conformation, to the her-
ring, as to be called by the fishermen the mother
of herring. They are taken in surprising quanti-
ties, in most of the rivers visited by the herring.

CLUPEA. 161

Though strongly resembling that fish in outward
appearance, it grows very much larger, — being
generally more than a foot in length, but flat
and broad. On the northwest coast of America
they are inconceivably numerous.

The average weight is from five to eight pounds,
in the true fishing season. From the last of April
to the early part of July, they are ascending the
rivers for the purpose of depositing their spawn.
Among epicures the roes are considered a deli-
cacy, far superior to the fish itself. The price
they sometimes bear in the market, before they
begin to run, is truly enormous.

This fish, as well as many others of the family
to which it belongs, is organized for breathing-
either fresh or salt water, though it seems it
cannot propagate if confined exclusively to either.
In most of the rivers visited by the herring, the
shad is successfully taken, in large nets, supported
on the surface by a series of buoys.

The shad fishery of the Connecticut river, has
been a source of great wealth and prosperity to
the proprietors on its banks, from Saybrook far
into the interior of Massachusetts. Many years
since two hundred and ninetysix seines were
counted, between Saybrook and Hartford; — it is
probable there were a number farther up.

One man remarked that he once caught thir-
11

162 SALMONIDES.

tysix barrels of shad, at his locality, at one haul.
Some idea may be formed, from these statements,
of the incredible number which were annually ta-
ken in the Connecticut in former times. All the
smaller rivers have their quota, in the fishing sea-
son.

The Merrimac, Medford, Connecticut, Nepon-
set, &c, are amongst the principal rivers in Mas-
sachusetts, in which this fish was taken in such
quantities as to make the fishery a decidedly pecu-
niary object.

Alewife, — Clupea Vernalis. This fish seems
to hold a place between the shad and herring,
having the general characteristics of both. Its
habits bear a striking similarity to those two fish-
es, inasmuch as it ascends rivers to deposit its
spawn, and retires again to the ocean.

Although caught in vast abundance at many
places in the Commonwealth, Taunton river has
been the most distinguished for the alewife fishery.
Judge Davis informs us, in an obliging note, that
the "alewife," or, as our laws very carefully ex-
press it — ufish called the alewife" is doubtless
of the genus clupea.

In the list of New England fishes, in the third
volume of Dr Belknap's History of New Hamp-
shire, it is denominated clupea serrata. In the

CLUPEA. 163

preparation of that list, the late Rev. Dr Cutler
was consulted, and we believe Professor Peck, al-
so. The specific names of three of the genus

THE ALEWIFE.

clupea, are inserted in a different character from
those, whose specific names had been previously
established : Serrata is one of the new names.
The common name is so universal, and of such
long standing, that the usual adjunct, "so called,"
may well be omitted. " It is derived, probably,
from Alosa, the specific name of its congener, the
shad."

" I have been led to think that the term ale-
wife, applied to this fish, was framed by our an-
cestors, — having reference to the shad ; espe-
cially as the Plymouth Pilgrims had heard of it
in Holland, and by the old English term, oldwife.
It is, I believe, a fish peculiar to our country : the
streams in and about Plymouth, are full of them,
in their season."

There is no inlet of fresh water, to the sea, vis-

164 SALMONIDES.

ited by the shad and herring, that is not also the re-
sort of the alewife. Vast quantities are pickled,
smoked, &c.both for home and foreign consump-
tion.

It has been suggested, that alewife is derived
from the " Indian word aloof — signifying a bony
fish.

Bret, or Brit, — Clujjea Minima. Probably
this is the fish mentioned by Dr Belknap. It is
very small and delicate, seldom exceeding more
than one inch and a half, having a black back, and
silvery scales on the sides. The median line is
straight, and near the spine. The pectoral fins
are large, made up often rays, — flexible, like a
brush, and near the gills. Ventral fins three —
two posterior to the vent, and a single one near the
tail.

There is but one dorsal fin, directly opposite
the posterior ventral : the caudal contains from
fourteen to eighteen soft rays ; gill cover in one
broad plate, having a line that, at first sight, ap-
pears to divide it into two pieces.

The eye is full, and the under jaw a little the
longest. Although this appears like a fish in min-
iature, it is very beautiful. Prepared as the an-
chovies are, there is every reason to suppose they
would be equally prized for the table. Shoals

esox. 165

of them are driven about by the mackerel in July
and August.

FAMILY III. ESOCES.

GEN. ESOX.

Common Pike, — Pickerel, Esox Lucius.*
With a few exceptions the body has an olive
shade, considerably dark on the back ; but the
sides, in particular positions, show waving lines,
delicately mottled with dark spots. The under
jaw is a trifle the longest. All the intermaxillary
bones, palate and tongue, are studded with minute
teeth ; some of them, however, bordering the
edges, are considerably developed.

THE PIKE.

It has but one dorsal fin, directly opposite the
anal, and both have thirteen rays. In this
country, as in Europe, it varies from six inches

* In England young pike are called Pickers, when half
grown Jack, and at full growth, Pike.

166 ESOCES.

to several feet in length, and is taken in the rivers,
lakes, &c, throughout the United States. In Mas-
sachusetts it rarely exceeds two feet.

Their digestive machinery is quite curious-
ly constructed. When young, in England, meas-
uring about one foot, they are called Jacks. When
of this size they are splendidly shaded with
green and yellow spots ; as they grow older, how-
ever, the brilliancy of the coloring is lost, and
they even have a dingy hue — and in extreme
age, become of a metallic complexion. Young
water-fowls, frogs, and indeed every living creature
which they can master, they never hesitate to
seize upon.

They are usually caught with a bait made of a
small fish. The flesh is white and nutritious, and
on the whole, it is one of the best table fishes in
New-England, but only a comparatively small
number find their way to the Boston market. In
the western part of the state they occasionally at-
tain the length of two feet and a half.

Dr Williams, author of the History of Vermont,
informs us that the pike in that state bears the
name of muschilongce. Lake Champlain abounds
with them, of immense 'size and length. The
Doctor says they are easily speared, a common
mode of taking them all over New England.

esox. 167

From the lakes, specimens are produced, weigh-
ing forty pounds — and six feet long.

The pike of this country does not differ, essen-
tially, from the pike of Europe. If there is any
difference, it is solely referable to the color,
which we have remarked, varies with the age,
and probably too, with the quality of the water in
which they reside.

This fish, when well grown, seems to delight
in clear water, near some stone or root, where it will
remain hours together, if not frightened; in this
situation, it is a common sport to shoot them with
a rifle.

In illustration of their voracious character, we
have selected the following facts from different
authors.

In Germany, a mule, in the act of drinking, at
a river, was seized by a huge pike, which fastened
on its nose, and nearly succeeded in drowning the
poor beast. Though the mule, by struggling, aid-
ed by the driver, got its nose out of the water, the
pike kept its hold and was drawn on shore and
killed. A little girl, not many years since, in dip-
ping water from a pond, was attacked by one of
these violent creatures,' which dreadfully lacera-
ted her arm.

They not only become extremely despotic in

168 ESOCES.

ponds, destroying all other fishes, frogs, &c. — but
under circumstances of hunger, swallow each oth-
er. Pennant mentions an instance of one that was
actually choked to death, in trying to swallow one
of its own species.

This is an unnatural trait of character, it being
an exceedingly rare occurrence that any family of
animals feed upon its kindred. Male crocodiles
destroy the young ones when they are first hatch-
ed, and so do sharks and swine, but such an
act seems to depend upon constitutional cir-
cumstances which we are unable to explain.
Even water rats, are driven away from the pike
waters.

According to Block, it increases more rapidly
than any other fish with which we are acquaint-
ed. In the first year, it grows, in Europe, from
eight to ten inches ; in the second, from twelve
to fourteen ; and the third year, to eighteen or
twenty.

It is inferred that they are very aged, when
they arrive at the amazing length of six feet, a
circumstance by no means uncommon, in the
northern lakes, in England, Germany and Po-
land.

Rzaczynshi mentions a pike that was ninety
years of age ; and Gesner relates, that one was
taken near Hailbrun, in Suabia, in 1479, with a

esox. 169

broken ring attached to it, importing that it was
placed in the lake in 1230 — giving it the wonder-
ful longevity of two hundred and fortynine years.
The very ring is still kept at Manheim.

Many years since an old pike siezed the head
of a swan, in Lord Gower's canal, and gorged so
much of it, that both the fish and the majestic bird
were killed. Combats have been witnessed be-
tween two of them.

In a well stocked pond on a gentleman's estate,
in England, one single pike, in about one year,
became sole lord of the water, having completely
devoured every fish.

The pike-ponds of Poland have been sources
of immense profit, in former times, to the proprie-
tors, and might be so in the vicinity of any of our
large towns. One acre of poor land, turned into
a pond, and stocked with pickerel, would yield
more income to the owner, than the produce of
six acres of cultivated land.

We entertain the hope that some attention will
be paid to this sure source of domestic economy,
by the Horticultural Society of Boston, — who by
offering premiums, might bring this delightful fish
in considerable plenty, into our markets.

There have been several laws enacted, from
time to time, by the Legislature of Massachusetts,
for protecting pickerel, and specifying the time

170 ESOCES.

when it may legally be fished for. Nothing can
be more absurd than the whole course of legisla-
tion on this subject. Look at the statute book,
and the reader will find as many unphilosophical
and absurd restrictions, on man's natural propen-
sity for angling, as ever were printed ; and man-
ifestly at variance with the design of our Creator.
No other confirmation of this remark is necessary,
beside the total disregard in which the edicts are
held by all classes of citizens.

The money which has been actually expended
in legislating on the " Alewives in Taunton Great
River" would have constructed a monument of
their bones, as high as the incipient granite me-
mento on Banker Hill, which would have been
more marvellous, and decidedly of as much utility
as anything the operation of the laws have effect-
ed for the Taunton Great River aleivives.

The fisheries in China are free to all ; there are
no restrictions on any of the great rivers, lakes or
canals. The subject of the protection of the fish-
eries is not once mentioned in the Leu-lee, but
the heavy duties on salt, renders the use of salt
fish, in China, an article of food almost unknown :
beside nets, the line, and spear, the ingenious peo-
ple of that country have a peculiar method of fish-
ing with the Cormorant, pelicanus piscator, which
extends all over the empire. The bird is taught

ESOX 171

while young, to dive for the fish, which it would
greedily swallow, were it not for a metallic ring
slipped over the neck, which holds the fish in the
throat, so that the man in the boat, pulls it out and
suffers the bird to dive again.*

The cormorant will catch bushels a day, in this
manner, being taught to swim towards its master,
to deliver the burden. In other parts, it is a very
common practice, to take fish by torch light, as is
practised in spearing eels, suckers, &tc. in the in-
terior of New England. But they have one more
curious and successful mode, which does not seem
to have been copied anywhere, which is this : — a
white painted board, highly varnished, is fixed
along the outside edge of the boat, with another
inside, so that both are like the roof of a house.
In moon-light, the board reflects the rays into
the water, in such a manner, as to induce the fish
to spring toward it, supposing it a sheet of moving
water, and thus they fairly leap over the ridgepole
into the boat.

The boldness and voracity of the pike are so
extraordinary, that it may with propriety be term-

* Oviedo Gomaro, as well as other writers, have testified to
the fact, that the Indians of the Antilles, had the art of taming
a species of sea-fish, and employed them in pursuing others.
Its size was small, and in their dialect, called guaican, and by
the Spaniards, reverso. Mr Clinton says Oviedo explains the
manner in which they conducted the process.

172 ESOCES.

ed the river shark. Instances have been known of
its seizing the hands of people who attempted to
grasp them while in the water ; — of their devour-
ing fish whose size was nearly equal to their own ;
— and shortly after yielding to the temptation of
the angler ; and that, even while their intestines
were lacerated and corroded by hooks and wires,
which they had previously broken and swal-
lowed.

A single large pike has sometimes depopulated,
in a very brief space, a well stocked pond, where
it was permitted to commit its ravages with im-
punity ; — and not confining its attacks to the in-
habitants of its native element, has drawn ducks,
and other water-fowls under, which had incautious-
ly ventured within reach.

This fish is no less remarkable for its tenacity
of life, after being removed from the water, than its
vigor while in it — snapping at objects presented
to it for a long time after it is caught, with as
much eagerness as if it were still at liberty.

A gentleman was once angling for pike, and
succeeded in taking a very large one, at which
time he was encountered by a shepherd and his
dog; he made the man a present of the fish, and
while engaged in clearing his tackle, he saw the
dog, who had for some time been expressing his
satisfaction by the most unequivocal signs, seat

esox. 173

himself unsuspectingly with his tail at a tempting-
proximity to the jaws of the pike, which suddenly
caught at it.

It would be impossible to express the terror of
the dog, on finding such an appendage thus
en-tailed upon him — he ran in every direction to
free himself, but in vain, and at last plunged into
the stream as a last resource, — but this was equal-
ly fruitless. The hair had become so entangled in
the fish's teeth, that it could not release its hold ;
accordingly, he struggled over to the opposite side,
now above, and now below the surface.

Having landed, the dog made for his master's
cottage with all haste, where he was at length
freed from his unwilling persecutor; yet, notwith-
standing the fatigue the latter had endured, he ac-
tually seized and sunk its teeth into a stick which
was used to force open its jaws.

The pike lives to a great age, and attains an
uncommon size, if unmolested. One of the largest
probably ever taken, was found on drawing a pool
near Newport, England, that had not been fished
in for many years ; its weight was over one hun-
dred and seventy pounds. Another was taken in
Lough-Carrib, Ireland, weighing over seventy
pounds. In Persia, they attain a greater size
than in any other country.

174 ESOCES.

Pike spawn in March or April. During the
height of the season their colors are extremely
brilliant, being green diversified with bright yellow
spots ; at the close of the season the green fades
to a greyish hue ; and the yellow spots become
faint and indistinct. In the sultry hours of sum-
mer they are frequently to be seen dormant near
the surface ; in which situation they are some-
times taken by means of a noose of wire fastened
to a pole, ten or twelve feet long ; the wire is
slowly passed over the head and branchial fins,
when the fish is landed by a sudden, strong jerk.

The pike is partial to still, shaded water, where
it is not liable to be disturbed, and thrives better
in still water than running streams. Towards
winter it retires under banks which are over-
shadowed by bushes, stumps of trees, old roots,
and other objects which afford shelter and a bask-
ing place.

Its appearance in ponds where none were
ever placed, has been thought by some extraordi-
nary ; but we may easily account for this, by wrell
known data respecting the generation of fishes. In
these cases it is probable the ova were swal-
lowed by some aquatic fowl, and subsequently
ejected into those ponds, as plants are known
to have been produced, from a similar dissemina-
tion.

esox. 175

A gentleman in the north of England, who was
as enthusiastic in regard to the " gentle craft," as
old Izaak Walton himself; on reading an account
of some species of sea-birds being trained to bring
home to their masters the fish caught during the
day, was struck with the idea of trying a similar
plan with the domestic water-fowl.

Having a considerable sheet of water near his
residence, he procured a large goose, and having
attached a line about three fathoms in length, with
a hook suitably baited, to one of its legs ; he placed
it in the water, to swim round at its pleasure,
while he remained on the bank anxiously watch-
ing the success of his experiment.

After half an hour or more of expectation, he
was gratified by hearing a loud cry from his feath-
ered assistant, which in great alarm at the part it
was so suddenly made to perform, was wheeling,
diving, and screaming at a ludicrous rate ; now
making an involuntary sub-marine excursion, and
anon striving in vain to abandon the regions of wa-
ter for those of air.

The contest between the fish and its captor,
lasted a considerable time, the latter using every
exertion to gain the shore, and the former mani-
festing an invincible repugnance to accompany him.
The issue seemed long doubtful, but finally, after
a severe struggle, during which every inch of

176 ESOCES.

ground, (or rather water,) was bravely lost and
won, victory declared in favor of the goose, who
triumphantly landed with an uncommon large pike
in his train.

After this, the gentleman was in the habit of
taking his basket and book, and reclining on the
bank, amused himself with reading, while he sent
his novel purveyor upon the lake to catch, or be
caught, as might happen.

The goose, after a capture, apprised him by its
cries, and made straight for the bank, where he
stood ready to assist in securing it. In this curious
manner, he seldom failed of replenishing his bas-
ket and enjoying additional sport, with far less
trouble than required by the usual method.

GEN. BELONE.

Sea- Pike, — Esox Behne. This is known by
the name of spit-fish, and gar-fish, but in New
England, particularly, as the bill-fish, in allusion to
its long snout.

Occasionally, sea-pike have been found on the
beaches two feet and a half in length. The un-
der jaw is the longest by about half an inch, and
both are bordered by a single row of sharp, nee-
dle-like teeth. On the back are two dorsal fins,
with a furcated tail ; the genera color is a bright
green, except the fins, which are tinged with a faint

BELONE. 177

red. Specimens are frequently brought from the
West Indies, called the Barracauda pike, having
all the external appearances of the one living on
this coast, with this difference, — that it varies

THE SEA PIKE.

from five to eight feet in length — and the bones,
in preparing it for a natural skeleton, be-
come green. There is another, spoken of by
Base, esox viridis, but it is not the Barracauda,
nor the bill-fish of Massachusetts, — though the
bones of the latter become greenish on exposure
to the sun.

The head of a young sea-pike from Trinidad,
presented the writer by a seaman, the jaws of
which are seven inches from the tip to the articu-
lation, had a body six feet long. Though vora-
cious and active, it is much esteemed by some for
food. The sea-pike, however, may be consider-
ed scarce in these waters.

We are assured by foreign writers, many of
12

178 ESOCES.

whom have figured them, that the becuna, and
aureo-viridis, are natives of this country.

GEN. MESOGASTER.

Flying-Fish, — Exocetus Mesogaster. The
body has a bright, silvery, metallic lustre ; the pec-
toral fins, or wings, are narrower and larger than
those of the Mediterranean. In the middle of the
abdomen are the ventral fins.

In length, they vary from three to eight inches,
but are rarely seen, except in the heat of sum-
mer. We have various specimens, which flew on
board a vessel about six hours sail from land, on
the coast of Massachusetts.

THE FLYING FISH.

Such is the length and fan-like breadth of the
pectoral fins, that the fishes of this genus have the
power of rising out of the water, and flying seve-
ral hundred feet in a right line. This, however,
it is supposed, they seldom attempt, unless to es-

CYPRINID.E. 179

cape from a pursuing enemy. Within the tropics
they are numerous ; on this coast inward-bound
vessels frequently find them on deck in the night.
Sea-birds prey upon the flying fish, and the dolphin,
it is reported, when it rises from its natural
element, to escape the jaws of the pursuing adver-
sary, keeps onward, well knowing that it will
soon strike the water again. This is the hirando
of the ancients.

FAMILY IV. CYPRINIDiE.

The family of carps, is distinguished by not pos-
sessing an adipose fin ; by a small mouth and
weak jaws, — destitute of teeth. The pharyngeal
bones perform the office of teeth. The branchial
rays are few ; the body scaly ; the intestines
short, and without caecums. They have' a swim-
ming bladder divided into two sacks, somewhat
like an hour-glass, and live in fresh water, being
harmless, inoffensive, and quiet inhabitants.

In the United States we have not yet discover-
ed the true carp of Europe, which is so extensive-
ly bred in pleasure grounds. Usually it grows to
twelve and eighteen inches, but in the stagnant
waters of Persia still larger. It is generally sup-
posed to have been carried to England about
1514. The quantity of roes extruded by the fe-

180 CYPRINID^E.

male, far exceeds the weight of her body. It is
also believed that they may live to more than two
hundred years.

Though denominated the wise, on account
of its sagacity, yet in the spawning season it will
allow the angler to tickle its sides, and is thus
easily captured by hand. The sale of carp has
constituted a part of the revenues of the nobility
and gentry in Prussia, Pomerania, Brandenburg,
Saxony, Bohemia, Mechlenburg and Holstein, —
in all of which places, the rearing of this fish is re-
garded with peculiar interest. We do not know
why carp may not be introduced and naturalized
here, and become as great a source of profit.

There are basins of water in every direction, in
the immediate vicinity of Boston, of no kind of
use whatever, at present, that might become
most valuable appendages to an estate, by stock-
ing them with pickerel or carp.

GEN. CTPRINUS.

Golden Carp, — Cyprinus Auratus. The
gold fish was introduced into this country, many
years since, from England, especially for orna-
ment. It is a native of China, in the province of
Chekyang ; and persons of distinction, all over
the Celestial Empire, rear them in vases, some of
which are very costly.

CYPRINUS. 181

The gold-fish has become climated in the north
ern states, and may be found in various places in
Massachusetts.* There is a pond in Brookline,
in which beautiful specimens may be seen, cours-
ing along the margin.

As it is customary in towns to keep gold-fish in
glass vessels, as parlor ornaments, it may be use-
ful to remark, that the water should be changed
daily, without failure. If tar, or the staves of tar-
barrels are burned in the room, it is very danger-
ous to the fish ; the lighting of a brimstone match
is also very liable to kill them.

The best kind of food, extensively prepared in
Canton, and sold in the shops, is a mixture of flour
paste, mixed with the yolks of hard boiled eggs.

* In Venezuela, there is a curiously formed little fish, call-
ed carribi, extremely annoying to bathers. These are never
more than three or four inches in length, and are shaped like
a gold-fish, which they also resemble in the brilliant orange
hue of their scales. Although they are so small, their ex-
ceeding voracity, and the incalculable numbers in which
they swarm, render them very dangerous. They are, indeed,
to the full as much dreaded, if not more so, by a Banero, than
the cayman. Their mouth is very large in proportion to
their size, and opens much in the same manner as a bullet-
mould. It is furnished with broad sharp teeth, like those of a
shark in miniature ; so that wherever they bite, they take
away a piece of flesh. When once either man or beast is at-
tacked by them, they will strip the limb of flesh in a surpris-
ingly short time ; for the taste of the blood spreading in the
water collects them in myriads.— Campaigns and Cruises in
Venezuela.

182 CYPRINID^E.

The Chinese Jugglers teach them to rise and
fall in the water, at their bidding.

The silver-fish, or silver-carp, is found in the
same waters with the red ; indeed, in stocking
the pond with the true gold-fish, in the course of a
few generations silver-colored individuals make
their appearance. To what circumstance this is
owing we are not able to explain.

Shiner, — Cyprinus Crysolencas. Among the
fresh water fishes, this is one of the smallest.
Though we have seen individuals two inches in
length, they are oftener less than one. They are
a beautifully proportioned, shining little fish —
the prey of their larger neighbors, and the sport of
school-boys, who angle for them with a crooked
pin.

Minow, — Cyprinus Atronasus. This is an-
other of the lilliputian fishes, scarcely exceeding an
inch in length. It may be seen in shoals in all
the little brooks over New England.

Chub, — Cyprinus Ohhngus — [Philadelphica,
of Belknap.] In the clear rivers and rivulets in
the western sections of Massachusetts, this beauti-
ful fish is quite common. It is taken with a hook
baited with the angle-ivorm. In winter, it may be

COBITIS. 183

caught through the ice, by baiting with cheese and
Venice turpentine.

The head is large, the back of a dusky green,
the sides silvery, the abdomen white, the pectoral
fins yellowish, and the ventrals and anals tinged
with red. This fish seems to be very timid, and
the angler therefore, in fixing himself in a good po-
sition, over some deep hole, where the chub con-
ceals itself under the projecting long roots of trees,
is obliged to move very cautiously, or he will fright-
en it away. For the table, the chub would be
considered very excellent, were it not for the mil-
lions of little bones. They are frequently eight
and ten inches long.

GEN. COBITIS.

Sucker, — Cyprinus Teres. [Catastomiis]. From
the earliest period of boyhood, we have been fa-
miliar with the fresh water sucker, a lazy, still fish
of a dingy color, with mouth very like that of the
lamprey eel, being constituted of a semi-cartilagi-
nous ring, at the extremity of a short elastic sack,
as it were, under the jaws ; it appears, on close
examination, as though the skin from the tip of
the snout, was drawn down under the tip of the
under jaw, and a hoop set in the thus elongated
tube.

It basks in the hot sun, fastened by the mouth

184 CYPRIN1D.E.

to a stone or root, along a muddy bottom, heading
towards the stream. Is this not similar to the
loche of Europe ? Where it is not often disturb-
ed it attains the length of a foot and a half,
weighing one or two pounds. It is a favorite sport
of country lads to follow a rivulet and spear them
by torch-light. As food, they are not very much
prized.

Mr Bruce, the keeper of the Boston light-house,
has politely forwarded a strange fish which he
found in a lobster pot, that was unknown to him
or any of the fishermen in his service, which has
a mouth precisely like the fish above described ;
but the body, instead of being round, is quite thin
and wide, back of the gills. The color is silvery,
mottled with dark waving lines. It is in length
about ten inches, and appropriately denomina-
ted the sea-sucker.

GEN. ABRAMIS.

Bream, — Abramis Chrysoptera. Commonly
the bream in this part of the country is small, not
exceeding seven or eight inches. The body is
slender, sides silvery, the abdomen tinged with
red ; and the anal fin has fortyone rays.

LEUCISCUS. 185

GEN. LEUCISCUS

Roach, — Leuciscus Rutilus. This fish inhab-
its the larger class of rivers, and is very excellent
for the table. The body seems to be compressed ;
— the scales are of considerable size, — the fins
tinged with red ; the dorsal opposite the ventrals,
and the tail slightly forked. Occasionally they
weigh a pound.

Dace, or Dare, — Leuciscus Vulgaris. This
little fish is known wherever the others are. Elev-
en rays are found in the anal fin, and ten in the
dorsal ; — the length is from six to eight inches.

These are the usual kinds of fish taken in the
rivers in the interior of New Hampshire, Vermont,
and Massachusetts, this side of Connecticut river.
Prof. Hitchcock, of Amherst College, has polite-
ly forwarded to us, specimens of the white and red
dace, which appear to be very common in that
vicinity.

We have not been able to procure any that ex-
ceed eight inches. Small as they are, they are
exceedingly delicate and well tasted. We enter-
tain the hope of having an opportunity of investi-
gating the fresh water fishes of the interior, in a
more particular essay, hereafter.

Bleak, — Leuciscus Alburnus. This, too, is

186 SILURIDjE.

a small fish, rarely exceeding six inches. The
eyes are large with a blood-red spot on the lower
side ; the body is broad and flat ; the color of the
back is an olive green ; fins pale ; the lower jaw a
little longer than the upper. In the anal fin are
twenty one rays.

Short-Chub, — Leuciscus Cephalus. In the
western and northwestern part of the state the chub
is quite common. The body is plump and silvery
with a tinge of blue ; the head is chubby, and the
snout rounded ; the scales pretty large and angular ;
fins a kind of iron rust color, the tail slightly blue ;
the anal fin has fourteen rays.

FAMILY V. SILURIDJE.

In this family there is a want of scales, the
body being covered with a leathery skin which se-
cretes an unctuous slime. The swimming bladder
is attached to a particular bony contrivance, quite
curious in its functions. There are cirri, or long
feelers as they are termed by anglers, on the
margin of the lips ; — and there is one ray like a
thorn on the anterior edge of the pectoral fins.

This family is widely spread in the rivers
of America. Pont, horn-pout, bull-head, si-
lurus felio, he, are the vulgar names by whic

SILURUS. 187

the individuals of the genus silurus are known in
New England. In the great western rivers the
cat-fish, often eight feet in length, is nothing more,
nor less than a mammoth horn-pout. Writers
speak of them as the largest fresh water fishes of
Europe. They are slow, sluggish, and seem to
have a predilection for dark, muddy wTaters, in
which vermin abound.

Few exceed a foot in length, in the northern
states ; oftener they are much short of that. In
bays where, by the rise of rivers, they get intro-
duced, they breed very fast, and bushels of them
are sometimes raked out of very small pools.

They are exceedingly tenacious of life ; — their
vitality is so low, and their constitution so pecu-
liar, that they may be partially frozen without de-
struction. The past winter the writer, by acci-
dent, left two pouts in a small tin pail, in an upper
apartment of the City Hall, in the month of De-
cember, during a severely cold night ; and in the
morning they were found frozen closely in the
ice.

After being exposed to the warmth of a
stove with reference to emptying the vessel, to
our utter amazement the fishes revived, and are
now the tenants of a cistern in Battery March
Street.

It was suggested by Bloch that the loche,
placed in a vessel of water, would be a very good

188 SILURIDiE.

barometer, as it becomes uneasy when stormy
weather approaches, — putting its lips above the
surface, as though gasping for air. We are in
doubt, whether the pout should be placed in the
genus cobitis, or in the place now assigned. At
all events, the same uneasiness may be observed
in the pout, on the approach of a change of
weather.

GEN. SILURUS.

At the moment of writing this article, Saturday
evening, February 22d, we have before us, in a
tumbler of water, a little fish of the genus silurus,
only an inch and a half in length, taken this morn-
ing from the nose of an aqueduct pump, in Blos-
som Street ; it must, therefore, have come from
Jamaica Pond, in Roxbury, about six miles through
the logs.

The mouth is somewhat like the broad jaws of
the frog ; the eye is large and bright, the body
thick, through the pectoral fins ; the abdomen
whitish ; the back and sides a dark olive, and from
the lips eight cirri, or feelers shoot out ; four un-
der the mouth, two over the rim of the upper lip,
and one at each angle of the mouth, larger and
longer than the others. With these it is enabled
to catch small fishes that dart towards them, mis-
taking them for worms, as the pout lies quietly
eyeing its game.

S1LURUS. 189

In this respect its habits bear a striking resem-
blance to the sturgeon. There are two species in
this vicinity ; the one having but one dorsal fin and
the other an adipose, or second high feathery dor-
sal, quite near the tail. The one before us has
this second soft fin and two more cirri ; the other
has but six of those appendages.

THE HORN POUT.

These fishes are not much admired for the ta-
ble ; still they are very tolerable food. Some-
times they are sought particularly for the sick, it
being supposed the flesh is remarkably easy of di-
gestion. In taking them from the hook, which they
very readily seize with almost any kind of bait,
there is danger of being wounded by the pectoral
thorn, which is kept at a right angle with the bo-
dy, as a weapon of defence.

The truly enormous size to which they attain
in the Ohio and Mississippi rivers, may well excite
the astonishment of travellers. Dr Joshua B.
Flint, of Boston, an accurate naturalist, remarked

190 GADITES.

to us, that during his passage up the Mississippi
he had seen them six, seven and eight feet in
length. The farther south we examine the rivers,
the larger they appear to grow.

ORDER VII. — MALACOPTERYGII
SUBRACHIATI.

FAMILY I. GADITES.

In this family, the ventral fins are fixed under the
throat, and considerably pointed ; the body is cov-
ered with soft scales, the head, however, being
without them ; all the fins are soft ; teeth in many
unequal rows, like a rasp, — and the branchial
openings have seven rays. Usually, all the fam-
ily have two, and sometimes three dorsal fins, and
a distinct caudal. The air-bladder is large.

GEN. MORRHUA.

Common Cod, — Gadus Morrhua. In the gill
membrane are seven flexible rays ; the head tol-
erably smooth ; body covered with loose scales ;
generally, in all the species found at the north ;
ventral fins very soft and slender.

We consider it unnecessary to enter into a mi-

MORRHUA. 191

nute description of a fish so universally known as
the most valuable production of the sea to man.
The cod abounds on the whole coast of Massachu-
setts, but flourishes in the greatest vigor and abun-
dance still further north.

Indeed, the cod-fishery, as adverted to in the
preliminary essay on the importance* of the fishe-
ries, in the commencement of this volume, has be-
come a business of national importance not only to
this, but in fact to many other countries, contrib-
uting alike to the support and prosperity of mil-
lions of people. Several towns in Massachusetts
are wholly indebted to this interesting branch of
industry for their wealth and increasing commer-
cial importance.

The cod is gregarious, going in immense armies
from place to place, but remaining certain parts
of the season at particular localities, which afford
its appropriate food in greatest abundance ; sea
worms, small muscles and marine plants, are com-
mon on clear, sandy or rocky bottoms, and there
the cod is caught.

It is wonderfully prolific ; Leuwenhoek announ-
ced the discovery of nine millions of eggs in a sin-
gle cod ! thirtysix thousand have been counted in
modern times. A French writer, in commenting
on this curious provision for maintaining the exist-
ence of the species, says that we have the assur-

192 GADITES.

ance of an inexhaustible supply of wholesome food,
secured to all succeeding generations.

The inshore cod, as on the great banks, are
caught with a line, in two, six and eight fathoms
of water, where the tide ebbs and flows with con-
siderable force, over rocky soundings. Pleasure
boats are often successful in hauling one or two
hundred in a day, weighing from one to fifteen
pounds. Those huge specimens seen occasionally
in the stalls, are procured farther out at sea.

Those boats which supply the market, summer
and winter, go about six miles, where, after hav-
ing procured a quantity, they rim up in the night
to deliver them fresh the next morning to their
regular customers. Many have their smacks so
constructed that the fish are kept alive in the hold
till the hour of sale. This is certainly much bet-
ter than the old mode of keeping them till the next
day, as they have a tendency to become putrid
much sooner than the flesh of land animals.

The New York market is decidedly superior to
Boston in this respect, viz : — the fish are actual-
ly swimming in the car when sold.

In the spring the cod seems uncommonly vora-
cious ; for however unsuccessful it may have been
in snatching the bait from the hook, and notwith-
standing the mouth may have been severely lace-
rated, it seizes with avidity the very next it dis-

MORRHUA. 193

covers. Wounds heal in a few days, so that
however badly the skin is torn, the gelatine of the
blood is poured in so copiously as to close the
breach much sooner than the healing process is
completed in warm-blooded animals.

Two or three years since the keeper of Rains-
ford island caught a cod which had suspended to
about a yard of line, a lead weight of several
pounds, the other end being secured to a hook
which was deeply imbedded in the bones and in-
teguments of the upper jaw. How long the poor
fish had been dragging about the inconvenient bur-
den, it was difficult to decide.

The best bait for pleasure-party cod-fishing, is
the common mud clam ; by some, however, the
menhaden is thought preferable. Many kinds offish
may be successfully caught by the flesh of their
own species, but this is not the case with the cod.
That the odor of some kinds of bait is particularly
agreeable is well established, but the smell of pu-
trid matter, to this fish is so offensive, that instead
of playing about the hook they generally at once
go beyond its influence. We extract the follow-
ing remarks upon this species of fish from the Con-
versations Lexicon.

" Cod (gadus, L.,Bloch.); a genus of fishes be-
longing to the order jugulares (soft-finned, sub-
brachial, of Cuvier), distinguished by the following
13

194 GADITES.

characters : — a smooth, oblong or fusiform body,
covered with small, soft, duciduous scales ; ven-
trals attached beneath the throat, covered by thick
skin, and drawn out to a point; head scaleless ;
eyes lateral ; opercle not dentated ; jaws and an-
terior part of the vomer furnished with several
ranges of moderate-sized, unequal, pointed teeth,
forming a card or rasp-like surface ; the gills are
large, seven-rayed, and opening laterally; a small
beard at the tip of the lower jaw ; almost all the
species have two or three dorsal fins, one or two
anal, and one distinct caudal fin; the stomach is
sacciform and powerful, the coeca very numerous,
and the intestines of considerable length ; they
have a large, strong swimming-bladder, frequently
dentated or lobed at its borders.

" The most interesting of all the species is the
common or bank cod (6r. morrhua, L.). Regard-
ed as a supply of food, a source of national indus-
try and commercial wealth, or as a wonder of na-
ture in its continuance and multiplication, this fish
may justly challenge the admiration of every intel-
ligent observer. Though found in considerable
numbers on the coasts of other northern regions,
an extent of about four hundred and fifty miles of
ocean, laving the chill and rugged shores of New-
foundland, is the favorite annual resort of count-
less multitudes of cod, which visit the submarine

MORRHUA. 195

mountain known as the Grand Banks, to feed upon
the crustaceous and molluscous animals abun-
dant in such situations. Hither, also, fleets of fish-
ermen regularly adventure, sure of winning a rich
freight in return for their toils and exposure, and
of conveying plenty and profit to their homes and
employers.

" Myriads of cod are thus yearly destroyed by
human diligence; myriads of millions, in the egg
state, are prevented from coming into existence,
not only by the fishermen, who take the parents
before they have spawned, but by hosts of raven-
ous fishes, and an immense concourse of other ani-
mals, which attend upon their migrations to feed
upon their spawn : yet, in despite of the unceasing
activity of all these destructive causes, year after
year finds the abundance still undiminished, inex-
haustible by human skill and avidity, irrepressible
by the combined voracity of all the tribes of ocean.
This, however, is by no means the sum of destruc-
tion to which the species is liable. After the
spawn is hatched, while the fry are too young and
feeble to save themselves by flight or resistance,
they are pursued and devoured in shoals by numer-
ous greedy tyrants of the deep, and, still worse, by
their own gluttonous progenitors, clearly showing
that without some extraordinary exertion of crea-
tive energy, the existence of the species could not
have been protracted beyond a few years.

196 GADITES.

" Such, however, is the fecundity with which
the All-wise has endowed this race, that if but one
female annually escaped, and her eggs were safely
hatched, the species would be effectually preserv-
ed. This is not so surprising when we recollect
that the ovaries of each female contain not fewer
than 9,344,000 eggs, as has been ascertained by
careful and repeated observation. Few members
of the animal creation contribute a greater mass of
subsistence to the human race ; still fewer are
more universally serviceable than the cod-fish, of
which every part is applied to some useful pur-
pose.

" When fresh, its beautifully white, firm and
flaky muscles furnish our tables with one of the
most delicious dainties ; salted, dried, or otherwise
conserved for future use, it affords a substantial
and wholesome article of diet, for which a substi-
tute could not readily be found. The tongue,
which is always separated from the head when
the fish is first caught, even epicures consider a
delicacy ; and tongues, salted or pickled along
with the swimming-bladders, which are highly nu-
tritious, being almost entirely pure gelatine, are
held in much estimation by house-keepers, under
the title of tongues and sounds.

" The sound or swimming bladder of codfish, if
rightly prepared, supplies an isinglass equal to the

MORRHLTA. 197

best Russian, and applicable to all the uses for
which the imported is employed. The liver of
the cod, when fresh, is eaten by many with satis-
faction, but it is more generally reserved by fish-
ermen, for the sake of the large quantity of fine
limpid oil which it contains. This is extracted by
heat and pressure, and forms the well known cod-
liver oil of commerce, which, in many respects,
and for most uses, is superior to the commonly-
used fish-oil. The heads of cod-fish, after the
tongues are cut out, and the gills are saved for bait,
are thrown overboard, on account of want of room,
and because salting would not preserve them to
any advantage. Yet the head, being almost en-
tirely composed of gelatine, is, when fresh, the
richest, and perhaps the most nutritive part of the
fish. The fishermen, it is true, make use of it for
their own nourishment, but the great mass is
thrown into the sea — a circumstance we can
scarce reflect upon without regret, when we re-
member how many poor, in various charitable in-
stitutions, and through the country generally, might
be luxuriously fed with this waste. If vessels
were provided with the requisite implements and
fuel, these heads would furnish a large amount of
strong and valuable fish-glue or isinglass, that
would well repay the trouble and expense of its
preparation.

198 GADITES.

" The intestines of the cod-fish also yield a tri-
bute to the table ; the French fishermen, especial-
ly, prepare from them a dish somewhat similar,
and not far inferior to the sounds. Finally, the
ovaries or roes of the females are separated from
their membranes, and the eggs, nicely pickled,
afford an agreeable and gustful relish, far more
delicate and inviting to the palate than the cele-
brated Russian caviare."

The Barnstable Journal gives a statement of
the cod-fishery in that district in the year 1831,
from which it appears that licenses were granted
to one hundred and eightyeight vessels, averaging
58 to 100 tons each. These vessels were manned
by about fifteen hundred men and boys, averaging
eight persons to each. The gross proceeds from
the fishery is estimated at $319,060; averaging
about $12,000 a share to those employed, after
deducting the proportion to the owners of the ves-
sels and incidental expenses.

Rock-Cod, — Gadus Rupestris, is a beautiful
hard fish, taken near projecting rocks and hard
bottoms, but differs in no respect, whatever from
the common cod, except in color, and that is pro-
bably purely accidental, varying according to its
food or locality. When the rock-cod is first drawn
from the water, it has a bronze hue, but assumes

BROSMUS. 199

the color of tarnished brass, after having been in
the air a little time ; finally, when fairly dead, the
skin has an iron rust complexion. The fins, too,
when first drawn up, are tinged with a lively red,
as though injected with arterial blood.

As it respects its quality, as an article of food, it
is in high estimation, but after all, the superiority
over the grey cod, is merely imaginary. We con-
sider it the same fish.

Shoal-Cod, — Gadus Arenosus. This is no-
thing more than the common cod, notwithstanding
it is thought to have a browner color and less dis-
tinct spots.

GEN. BROSMUS.

Cusk, Torsk, — Brosmus Vulgaris. After
much trouble in procuring proper representatives
of this genu s, we have come to the conclusion that
it is not well enough known in this section of the
country, to be sufficiently prized. It is the fish
occasionally seen suspended in the stalls of the
Quincy market, under the name of Cuslc.

The essential external characteristics are a gray-
ish color, mottled with brown spots, in warm sea-
sons, but nearly black in winter ; a lateral line,
both broad and spotted, a cirrus on the chin, —
and upper jaw longer than the under, with thick

200 GADITES.

gelatinous lips ; the dorsal and anal fins extending
almost to the tail, which terminates in a rounded
form. In fact, it resembles the common cod, with
its caudal extremity sharpened into the form of a
lancet.

Some are exhibited three feet long, weighing
from eight to ten pounds, but they are not pur-
chased eagerly, — and the reason is, no one seems
to know their real value. This is the dorsch of
Germany ; the torsk of Sweden ; the sma-torst of
Denmark, and the tare-tosk of Lapland, — in each
country, taking the first place among dishes at all
fashionable tables.

It is the richest fish ever brought into the Bos-
ton market, and yet they lie on the dealer's hands
till almost spoiled, before they are sold. For boil-
ing it has not its equal ; the head, particularly, is
so purely a tremulous jelly, that for the debilitated
stomach, no food can be more grateful or more
appropriate.

We indulge the hope that gentlemen who take
an interest in encouraging the best market in New
England, will no longer neglect fostering the cusk
fisher) .

GEN. MERLUCCIUS.

Hake, — Gadus Merluccius. The first dorsal
fin has nine rays ; the second thirtyeight ; the pec

MERLUCCIUS 201

toral fifteen, ventral eight ; anal thirtysix, and cau-
dal eighteen. On the whole, the hake is a well-
proportioned and handsome fish, from one to two
feet long, though as an article of food, undervalued
in this country, notwithstanding the encomiums
bestowed upon it in Europe.

It is taken in baiting other fish, particularly the
mackerel, which the hake pursues from one point
of compass to another, followed by a variety of
smaller fry in its track, that feed on the mangled
remains of the mackerel, which are floating in the
train.

Hake are not taken in any quantity in Massachu-
setts, though exceedingly common. The coast
of France is the most distinguished hake fishery
in the known world. A writer of that country re-
marks, that since the great naval engagements be-
tween the English and French fleets, in 1759,
the hake, which before visited the sea, on the
shores of Bellisle, now remain through the whole
year ; and he supposes they were first attracted to
the present haking-ground, by the multitude of
dead bodies which were sunk there after that
awfully bloody action.

When very hungry, the hake exhibits consid-
erable voracity, and does not hesitate to seize a
crab, which, in self-defence, sometimes fixes its
shears in the retractile lips of the enemy, who

202 GADITES.

whirls it through the water with surprising veloci-
ty, till it is finally obliged to let go its hold.

Its teeth are small, sharp, and curved inwardly,
giving it a decidedly mechanical advantage over
many osseous fishes of its own size. Specimens of
the hake have been exhibited abroad, measuring
several feet. The largest caught here seldom ex-
ceed two feet. They are denominated, when pre-
pared for market, poor-JoTms. The best hake
are taken off Cape Cod, and sold under the name
of stock-fish.*

Haddock, — Morrhua JEglefinus. In Cath-
olic countries, there is a strange notion entertained
that this is the fish, out of whose mouth St Peter
took the tribute money. Two dark spots behind
the gills, continued to the countless generations of
haddock, indicate the impression of the Apos-
tle's thumb and finger.

Its upper jaw is the longest ; the tail is forked,
and the mouth small, compared with the magni-
tude of the fish ; the eyes are large, with a black
pupil ; — general color of the body a pale gray,

* Though the Church of England, gives no particular di-
rections concerning fasts, — Parliament has pursued a very
strange course, by prohibiting meat on fast days, — which is
for the purpose of encouraging the fisheries and naviga-
tion.

MERLANGUS. 203

tinged with brown towards the back ; there is a
silvery hue on the abdomen ; the medial or late-
ral line, in this case, quite near the back, and
very dark ; three fins on the back ; — the first
having fourteen, the second twentysix, and third
eighteen rays. The first two anal fins have
twentytwo, the second twenty, and the tail about
forty rays.

The haddock is an e very-day fish of the mar-
ket, easily taken, with the line, almost any time
of year, but in the winter season bears the best
price, being considered superior for boiling ; the
flesh is compact, and of excellent flavor.

GEK. MERLANGUS.

Whiting, — Merlangus Vulgaris. After con-
siderable inquiry, we are fully satisfied that the
true whiting of the books, as described in Dono-
van, exists on our shores, but is rather smaller than
the English whiting, which is greatly esteemed in
England. This circumstance may be explained
by recollecting that the temperature of the water
is probably colder here, than in the latitudes in
which they are more numerous, and more perfect-
ly developed.

There are three dorsal fins, — the first having
fifteen rays, the second twenty, and the third

204 GADITES

twentyone ; the pectoral fins have seventeen, but
the ventral only six.

The whiting is a small neat fish, only measuring
from six to twelve inches, depending, in this par-
ticular, on its age ; of a whitish dun color, some-
what approaching the complexion of the pollock.
They are taken sparingly in the autumn, in most
of the bays at the north of Cape Cod. At the
Cape, particularly, we are informed, the whiting is
caught in considerable plenty. In England, the
whiting fishery is one of manifest importance, pro-
tected by special acts of parliament.

When dried, they are called, in the shops,
spauldings. One before us, taken near Scituate,
measures eighteen inches in length.

Pollock, — Merlangus Pollachius — This is
an elegant little fish, when in good condi-
tion and well grown. Good specimens some-
times measure from ten to lourteen inches.
The head is narrow; the eyes are large and full ;
the color approaching an olive on the back, but
silvery white on the sides and abdomen ; the
fins are smoky ; the tail slightly forked ; the un-
der jaw somewhat the longest. As an article of
food, they do not rank remarkably high.

Tom-Cod, — Gadus Taucaud. We are fully

MERLANGUS. 205

aware of the objections that will probably be made
against the following remarks on this perplexing
variety of the cod, — so far as it respects the
place assigned it in the classification.

Very erroneously, the tom-cod has been suppo-
sed to be peculiar to this section of the United
States, and a stranger, therefore, to other seas.
After a careful examination of the plates and de-
scriptions of foreign writers, together with the live
fish before us at the moment of making these ob-
servations, it is apparent that the tom-cod is well
known in some parts of Europe.

From a note in a French work on icthyology, it
is pretty evident that by tacaud, is indicated the
fish known to us by the appellation of tom-cod, —
though the writer was probably wholly in-
debted to some American for the description
of it.

The Hon. John Davis, a gentleman ably quali-
fied to examine and determine correctly, informs
us that tom-cod is probably a corruption of tau-
caud, and if this is the fish indicated by Cuvier,
then " Gadus Taucaud" would seem preferable
to the name which has been given it by Dr Mitch-
ell, of New York, gadus tomcodus ! Judge Da-
vis says the doctor's scientific name generally ex-
cites a smile, when pronounced, but in defence, he
can plead, if necessary, the Felis catus, and mus-
rattus of Linnaeus !

206 GAD1TES.

Judging, however, from analogy, we are deci-
dedly of the opinion that torn-cod is a corruption
of an Indian name, tacaud, plenty Jish, and we are
confirmed in this theory, from a belief that this
fish was undoubtedly very familiar to the aborigi-
nes of this section of the country, and therefore
known to our ancestors only by its Indian name,
which in process of time degenerated from tacaud
into tom-cod ; or in other words underwent a cor-
ruption, which finally settled into tom-cod, — a
very natural sort of vulgarism with men who were
never ambitious to be particularly exact in the
pronunciation of Indian terms.

In support of this view of the subject, respect-
ing the origin of the present appellation, there are
several edible fishes which still retain their Indian
names, and which bear a striking relation to ta-
caud, viz : — sca-paug, shortened by the fisher-
men into scup ; tataug, — the tautog ; and lastly,
pau-haug, also murdered by piscatory vandals, till
in these times, the fish assumes the formidable
cognomen of pau-ha-gen, and finally, becoming
still more improved, it turns out to be the menha-
den, the latest coined word of their vocabulary.

The tom-cod may be recognised by three dor-
sal fins, two anal, three abdominal, and two pecto-
ral. The abdominal are small and slender, being
before the pectoral, as it respects the head ; un-

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 waving 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-

208 GADITES.

iarly known. The variations of color and size
depends on the age of the individual, and the qual-
ity imparted to the water by the character of the
bottom on which they feed.

Frost fish, Gadus Luscus, of New Hampshire,
and the G. tomcodus pluinosus of New York, present
no external characteristic differences. In fact, these
too, we conceive are imaginary varieties, assuming
perhaps, a more chubby appearance, and a darker
skin in the winter than in the summer. They are de-
nominated frost-fish, simply because they are taken
in scoop-nets through the ice, in places only where
the tide rises very high ; hence, the farther we
go to the northeast, the more common the fish.
At Eastport they are very plenty in the heart of
winter, the very time when few or none are
seen in our harbors in this region.*

The following are the characteristic differences
of the supposed varieties.

Brown Tom-Cod, — Tomcodus Fuscus, — mot-
tled with brown olive on the back and sides.

* A gentleman of observation remarks, that although the
tom-cod is scarce in the harbors in the winter, they may be
taken plentifully in the ponds and basins of streams, in Med-
ford and other neighboring towns, which have a communica-
tion with the tide water. He further observes, that in the
winter it is a charming exercise to search for them through
the transparent ice. When the fish is at rest, the ice directly
over it is struck with an axe, which brings it up instanter. A
hole is then made and the fish collected in baskets.

RAN1CEPS. 209

Yellow Tom-Cod, — Tomcodus Luteus — hav-
ing the sides yellowish, as well as the margin of
the abdomen.

Yellow-white Tom-Cod, — Tomcodus Luteo-
Pallidus — a mixture of white and yellow, with
shades also of brown and olive.

Frost-Fish, — Tomcodus, Pruinosus — so called
because more abundant inshore at the setting in of
frosts in November, but it is only then seeking a
retreat in bays, &c, for the coming winter.

Mixed Tom-Cod, — Tomcodus Mixtus. This
too is altogether an imaginary variety — age, sex,
and the season, are constantly modifying the ap-
pearance.

GEN. RANICEPS.

Blenny, — Blennius Viviparus, — [Raniceps
Trifurcatus, Cuv.] If the specimen before us, the
true viviparous blenny, is not an eel, it is very
certain that it does not belong to the gadus family,
where, in this dilemma, we have unluckily placed
it. Linnaeus has a distinct genus, blennius, but
the individual now being described, a well marked
representative of the family, as they are found in
this state, does not precisely accord with the de-
scriptions of the blenny by English writers.

On looking over that splendid series of German
lithographic plates of fishes, by Dr Strach, 1828,
14

210 GADITES.

an exact figure even to the coloring, was noticed,
which truly exhibits the blenny of the harbors of
Massachusetts, and must, therefore, we strongly
suspect, have been drawn from the American
blenny.

Its length is from one to two feet ; the head is
thick and broad, projecting teeth, white, retractile
lips, and a second row of fine, sharp, small teeth
or holders, on the margins of the jaws just within
the first arch. The second dorsal fin reaches near-
ly to the tail ; the ventral fins are rather slender,
trifurcate, with a lateral line tuberculated above
the pectoral fins.

THE BLENNY.

The shape of the blenny is lanceolate, from the
pectoral fins to the tail, which ends in a point or
soft brush of flexible caudal rays. The dorsal,
anal and caudal fins are all united into one, ex-
cepting at one place near the tail, encircling
the back and belly, with this one exception, and
terminating at the vent.

The pectoral fins have seventeen rays. Its

RANICEPS. 211

color is smoky, spotted with faint yellow dots, be-
side broad cloudy spots extending from the sides
quite into the dorsal fins. With the fishermen
north of the Cape, this is called the mutton-fish.
In Germany the same fish is called mother of eels.
Though snake-like and disgusting to the eye, it is
said to be excellent eating.

No doubt, varieties of the blenny may yet be
found on this sea-board, of which we have at pres-
ent no particular knowledge. We cannot always
rely upon the descriptions of the fishermen, who
in their anxiety to preserve the specimens designa-
ted on the catalogues they are furnished with by
us, are too apt to imagine that they unfortunately
lost the very fish that was most wanted. " The
very one, in fact, mentioned on the list." The
bay of New York furnishes two varieties of the
blenny unknown in Massachusetts, viz : ~~Blen-
nius Pholis, and B. Ciliatus.

Raniceps Blennioides. We have been present-
ed with a cream-colored fish truly disgusting in
appearance, which appears, with the exception of
the color, to be the blenny in miniature. To
some boys who accidentally captured it in the
outer basin of Boston harbor at low tide, it seemed
to be known as the garter-fish, — rather from its

212 PLEURONECTES.

color, it is conjectured, than from its supposed re-
semblance to a garter. It is twelve inches long.

FAMILY II. PLEURONECTES.

No family of aquatic beings is characterized by
so many strange circumstances. The eyes are
both on one side, but so arranged as to look up-
ward at an angle of about eighty degrees. The
side on which the eyes are fixed is always colored,
but the opposite one is quite light or whitish. In
fact, their anatomy demonstrates the greatest want
of symmetry. Writers remark, among other things,
that the two sides of the mouth are unequal, and
it is very rare to find the pectoral fins resembling
each other. In the branchial membrane are five
rays; the body seems to be compressed, as though
pressed between two stones ; — the dorsal fin en-
circles the fish like a ribbon, so that the back is on
one side ! The venter, or inside cavity, is quite
small, but prolonged into a canal in the side of the
tail : there is no air-bladder ; and the skull is the
oddest of all crania, in consequence of the arrange-
ment for accommodating both eyes on one side.

Notwithstanding the confused manner in which
the skeleton is apparently put together, distorted
and twisted into the queerest form, there is only

PLATESSA. 213

about the ordinary number of bones, entering into
the composition of other fishes. Sometimes we
find one with the eyes reversed.*

The flat fish of this family appear to be univer-
sally spread over the globe, in all seas and in all
climates, affording an excellent, nutritious and
wholesome food. Linnaeus gathered the whole
family into one genus, but the celebrated Cuvier
subdivided it into several sub-genera.

GEN. PLATESSA.

Flounder, — Platessa Vulgaris. Being with-
out the swimming-bladder, they naturally keep
near the bottom. Indeed, organized as they obvi-

*At St Petersburg;, it was formerly customary for the bish-
ops to bless the fishes annually, and in France it was on6e
gravely told, that when a certain St Christopher blessed the
inhabitants of the deep, the fishes came round the holy man
to listen, but the flounder, in derision, made wry faces ; upon
which the speaker feeling highly insulted, condemned the
whole race thereafter to be screwed into their present distort-
ed condition.

In Constantinople, says Mr Goodell, a missionary, now re-
siding in that celebrated city, is a Greek Church, or the ruins
of one, called the fish-church. It is outside the Siliviia g;ate,
where the Turks entered on taking Constantinople. At that
moment, some priests were frying fish for dinner, which
were so frightened, when the priests were killed, that they
jumped out of the pan, " not into the fire," but into a pond
under the present ruins, where, if common report be true,
they are still seen swimming about completely cooked on one
side.

214 PLEURONECTES.

ously are, for looking upward, rather than down-
ward, their food as well as the objects they are to
avoid, are to be sought for above. They bear a
strong resemblance to the flat fishes that swim on
one edge, as it were, but the flounder has not the
power of maintaining that position. Almost the
entire circumference of the body is fringed with a
stiff, prickly rayed fin, which, when expanded,
gives the flounder a waving, easy movement in the
water. It is quite rapid in its movements, but
prefers to remain on the surface of the mud, into
which it nestles for concealment, in case of fright.
Under favorable circumstances, they grow to a
great size. As an article of food they do not ap-
pear to be sufficiently prized.

THE FLOUNDER.

The flounder is generally known, and its
character well understood. The eyes are some-
times on the left side, but not often. It is one of
the most common fish in Massachusetts Bay, vary-

HYPOGLOSSUS. 215'

ing in size from the palm of the hand to fifteen
inches in length by ten in breadth. The floun-
der delights in the soft mud about docks, the
mouths of rivers, and salt marshes, where it is ta-
ken about seven months in the year. In warm
weather the flesh is soft, and much less palatable
than in the spring or autumn. Its food appears
to be marine insects, the spawn of other fishes,
and small muscles. About the Boston light-house,,
at low tide, flounders are taken by spears, of all
sizes, for baiting lobster-pots.

GEN. HYPOGLOSSUS,

- Holibut, — Hypoglossus Vulgaris. In this
genus, the holibut is the most conspicuous. It is
a voracious fish, pursuing crabs, small lobsters, &c.
but feeds principally, it is supposed, on shell-fish,

THE HOLIBUT.

which are so common on soundings, as the coast
of New England is approached. In the vicinity

216 PLEURONECTES.

of Cape Cod, the largest brought to market are
successfully taken with the line. They are some-
times really enormous in size, weighing five hun-
dred pounds.

Plaise, — Platessa Vulgaris. The plaise,
much resembling the flounder, is not recognised,
generally, as a different fish. It may be known

TAE PLAISE.

by small yellowish spots dotted over the back.
This fish is uncommonly thin and broad, and has
small tubercles, six in number, near the left eye.

On the authority of Mr Simon E. Green, an ic-
thyologist, we are inclined to suppose a fish called
the pearl, of Boston, which he assures us he has
inspected, and compared with a plate, is that
which is named the American turbot, or plaise.
Having, however, never seen the pearl, we are
unable to decide how much they differ from the
European. A gentleman whose observations are

HYPOGLOSSUS. 217

to be credited, assures us that he cannot per-
ceive the least possible difference between the
turbot of this country and that taken on the Brit-
ish shores ; and the testimony of an intelligent
fisherman, residing on Lovell's Island, fully cor-
roborates the statement of the gentleman refer-
red to.

William Ladd, Esq. of Maine, the distinguish-
ed advocate of the Peace society, informed us that
when the English fleet visited Boston, and held
possession of the town, in the year 1775-6, the
officers were bountifully supplied with turbot,
which were caught in the neighborhood of the
outer harbor. He further remarked, that about all
they did, while here, was to eat them !

Mr Parker, the conductor of the Marine Tele-
graph, mentioned, in the course of conversation,
that many years ago, Admiral Sir Isaac Coffin
brought out to this country a traul net, such as are
used on the coast of Holland for taking sole for the
London markets, with which he succeeded in
capturing that delightful fish, in Ipswich Bay,
which was not before supposed to exist here. Be-
ing a flat fish, destitute of an air-bladder, they
swim close to the bottom, and rarely bite at the
hook. Another gentleman, however, thinks this
is a mistake — for he assures us that a traul net
was dragged by the frigate Constitution, along a

218 PLEURONECTES.

considerable extent of our coast, without bringing
up a single turbot or sole. Still, although there is
something contradictory in these statements, we
are fully inclined to believe that both of them are
in our harbors.

GEN. SOLEA.

Sole, — Solea Vulgaris, is thought to be an
inhabitant of our harbors, bordering on the deep
water, nearly two feet in length. Its scales are
rough and small, and are covered with spines.
The habits of the sole are much like the flounder.
The mouth is on the side opposite to the eyes,
and the jaws are without teeth on the side on
which the organs of vision are placed.

GEN. RHOMBUS.

Turbot, — Rhombus Mammas. Probably this
is the most valuable of the flat-fish, being of a
firmer texture, and growing much larger than
either of the others, with the exception of the hol-
ibut. Sometimes it weighs thirty pounds, though,
in this region the coldness of the water, it may
be supposed, would keep it below size. It may
be known from the flounder by having its eyes on
the opposite side ; by its brownish or dirty shade
of yellow; rough, tuberculous skin, mottled with
dark spots. In England the turbot sustains the

CYCLOPTERUS. 219

first place on the table. The turbot fishery is
exceedingly profitable in that country, but at-
tended with heavy expenses. Sometimes the
line is a mile in length, from which short lines
drop into the water, supported by buoys. When
the fishermen perceive that a sufficient number of
fish are fast, to compensate for drawing the warp,
the two extremities of the rope are carried by
strongly rowed boats to the shore, where, inch by
inch, the multitude are brought to land. This fish
is taken occasionally on the holibut fishing-ground,
near the Cape.

FAMILY III. DISCOBOLI.

GEN. CYCLOPTERUS.

Lump-Fish, — Cyclopterus Lumpus. A mark-
ed character of the fishes of this genus, is the ar-
rangement of the- ventral fins, the rays of which
surrounding the pelvis and connected by a curious
membrane, form an oval and concave organ, by
which they are able to fix themselves firmly when-
ever they choose.

Mr Pennant relates that, " on throwing one into
a pail of water, it adhered so firmly to the bottom,
that on taking the fish by the tail the whole was
lifted, though it contained some gallons."

220

DISCOBOLI.

When the ocean becomes severely turbulent, it
is supposed they fasten on stones, to keep from
being driven suddenly on the rocky shores, which
they seem fond of frequenting. We have found
them on Long Island, in Boston harbor, after a
long continued northeast storm, weighing about six
pounds. It is barely possible that the anchor on
which they fixed for security, was torn from the
bottom, and both washed on the beach together.

The sucking surface acts upon the same princi-
ple of that upon the head of the remora, though
differently constructed, both being air-pumps.
Frogs adhere to trees by fleshy pads on their toes,
which are very similar to the lump-sucker's oval
cushion ; and either of them will sometimes allow
the body to be drawn in halves, before they
let go their hold.

THE LUMP FISH.

Lump-fish and lump-sucker, are names indiffer-
ently applied to the same fish. From the middle
of June till September, they are often drawn up
in fishing for cod and haddock. Being short and

ECHENEIS. 221

thick, and of a bluish purple color, together with
rigid fins, they are rather uncouth in appearance.
Some attain the length of a foot and a half, but we
have not been fortunate in procuring a specimen
of more than twelve inches long. The head is ob-
tuse ; the tongue short ; teeth small and sharp ;
the gill membrane has four rays ; the operculum
is constituted of one piece only; the body thick
and totally destitute of scales ; the ventral fins
united. On the sides are dark, prominent spots,
but bordering on the abdomen they become lighter ;
the belly is of a bright red, in midsummer ; pec-
toral fins orange, shaded with a redish tinge, and
the eyes are sparkling red.

We are assured they are a very tolerable
article of food, but of the truth of the remark, we
have had no experience.

Small-Lump-Sucker, — Cyclopterus Minutus.

In one bottle we have several specimens of this
little fish, not exceeding three quarters of an inch
in length. They have the same holding appara-
tus in a miniature form, and may be known from
the young of the lumpus, by two white . tubercles
on the sides.

GEN. ECHENEIS.

Sucking-Fish, — Echeneis Rernora. Two
species of the remora are occasionally taken on

222 D I S C O B O L I .

this coast, but in no other way than on the bodies
of sharks or the bottoms of vessels. The one un-
der consideration usually measures from four to
twelve inches, and is of a leaden color ; the body
is long and slender, covered by minute scales, and
on the back is one dorsal fin without spines. On
the top of the head is an oval spot which looks, at
first view, as though a slice of the cranium had
been cut off nearly on a level with the eyes. This
oval place is termed a disk, constituted of two
rows of transverse plates like the bars of a gridiron.
Perhaps to compare the bars with a Venetian
window blind, will convey- a better idea of the ap-
pearance than anything else. Each plate stands at

THE SUCKING FISH.

about the same angle as the slats of the blind, and
there is a space between every two of them. If the
edges were turned towards the snout, they would
be thrown up, and thus retard the motion of the
fish ; but by being directed backward, the greater
the velocity the closer do the edges of the plates
fold down over the spaces.

There are eighteen in this species, nine in each

ECHENEIS. 223

row. It is no uncommon circumstance to find
them adhering to vessels, and to sharks, for which
latter they seem to have a predilection. This disk
is upon the principle of an air-pump, precisely in
office like the adhering surface on the breast of
the lump-fish.

All the fins of the remora are small, so that it
cannot swim with much speed, but it makes up
the defect by fastening itself to any other fish it
chooses, out of the reach of its jaws, and thus,
without effort, glides through the ocean with prodi-
gious velocity, increasing or diminishing the rate,
it is supposed, according to its own particular fan-
cy, by the irritation it causes with the disk.

The ancients entertained a notion that this fish
had the power of arresting the motion of a vessel
at sea. The poets propagated the error, which
still has believers among the vulgar.

** The sucking-fish, beneath, with secret chains,
Clings to the keel, — the swiftest ship detains; —
And though the canvass bellie with the blast,
And boisterous winds bend down the cracking mast,
The bark stands firmly rooted in the sea."

Aristotle's admiration was excited by the or-
ganization of the remora, nearly two thousand
years ago. The fate of the famous battle of Ac-
tium was imagined to have been decided in favor
of Augustus, in consequence of the powerful

224 DISCOBOLI.

agency of a sucking-fish, that stopped Anthony's
ship.

Wherever sharks exist, there the remora may
be expected ; when once fastened on, they seem
unwilling to let go their hold, and like the old man
of the sea, on the shoulders of Sindhad the sailor,
they ride their enemies till they die.

We are inclined to the opinion that most of the
specimens procured in this latitude have been voy-
agers from the neighborhood of the tropics.

Indian Remora, — Echeneis Naucrates. We
have a specimen of this species over two feet
long, the proportions of which are truly elegant.
The color has a greenish tint, but the sucking
surface in shape precisely like the last described,
has twentyfour plates.

With this, the natives of Cuba formerly carried
on a very singular sort of angling, which was in
the following manner. A strong, small twine was
made fast round the tail of the fish, which, by the
way, was kept in a vat, and carried in a vessel of
water, wherever its services were required, and
then thrown overboard. It ran instinctively to-
ward the first fish which the length of line would
permit it to reach, and instantly made itself
fast. The moment the fisherman felt that such
was the case, he gently drew in the line, drawing

ECHENEIS. 225

both near the surface. He then carefully reached
his hands under the water, and thrust a finder un-
der the edge of the disk, which at once broke
the connexion. When he had secured the game
he then permitted the remora to run again, and in
that simple, though ingenious manner, it was the
most successful mode of fishing of which there is
any account, unless it be the cormorant fishing of
China, alluded to in another part of this volume.*
Interesting remarks on the remora will be found
in Capt. Couthuoy's letter to the author, under the
article mackerel.

* Sir George Staunton, when the embassy was pro-
ceeding on the great southern branch of the canal in China,
saw the Chinese fishing on a large scale, on a lake, with the
cormorant. There were thousands of small boats and rafts
built expressly for this species of fishing. On board of each
were ten or a do*en of those birds, which, at a given signal
from the owner, plunged into the water, and it much aston-
ished Sir George to see the enormous size of the fish which
they returned with in their bill. At that place, they were
so well trained, that it did not appear necessary to place a ring
on the neck to keep them from swallowing the prey. The
master occasionally gave them a portion, by way of encour-
agement.

15

226 APODES.

ORDER VIII. — M ALACOPTERYGII
APODES.

In this order, we are presented with a family
distinguished by their long, serpent-like bodies ;
a thick, remarkably tough skin, and though it is
generally conceded that they have swimming-
bladders, they are either too small to be of much
service, or answer some other purpose in their
economy, as nearly all of them prefer concealment
on a muddy bottom, rather than clear water.
The spine usually contains one hundred and six-
teen vertebrae, so slightly attached that they are
exceedingly flexible. Lastly, most of the fishes
of the auguilliform structure are viviparous. Gen-
erally the head is smooth ; the eyes defended by
the skin, (conjunctiva,) as in serpents ; the body
nearly round and slippery, in consequence of a
slimy excretion ; in the gill membrane are com-
monly ten rays ; the branchial openings are near
the head, and usually close to the pectoral fins ;
the dorsal, caudal, and anal fins are united into one
like a border. The color seems to vary accord-
ing to the character of the water they inhabit.

GEK. AUGUILLA.

The Common Eel, — Auguilla Vulgaris.

AUGUILLA. 227

The eel is most certainly the intermediate link be-
tween serpents and fishes, possessing not only a sim-
ilar form to the first, but many of their peculiar
traits of character. Eels can live alternately in fresh
or salt water, or abandon both, with impunity, and
subsist for a short time on land. They leave their
aquatic hiding-places, in warm summer evenings,
having the power of closing up their gills, to crawl
over marshes in search of snails, and putrid animal
remains, — evidently exhibiting an exquisite sense
of smell.

Oppian, who flourished many centuries ago, was
familiar with the habits of the eel, which are ad-
verted to in the Halieuticon, in the following lines.

" Thus the mailed tortoise, and the wandering eel,
Oft to the neighboring beach will silent steal."

Dr Hancock, a distinguished icthyologist, says
of the Doras Costata, or Hassar, " This species
is one of those fishes which possess the singular
property of deserting the water and travelling over
land. In those terrestrial excursions, large droves
of the species are frequently met with during very
dry seasons, for it is only at such periods that
they are compelled to this dangerous march, which
exposes them as a prey to so many and such
various enemies.

When the water is leaving the pools in which
they commonly reside, the yarrows, (a spe-

228 A P ODES.

cies of Esox Lin.) as well as the second species of
hassar, to which I shall presently refer, bury
themselves in the mud, while all the other fishes
perish for want of the natural element, or are pick-
ed up by rapacious birds, &tc. The flat headed
hassars, on the contrary, simultaneously quit the
place and march over land in search of water, trav-
elling for a whole night, as is asserted by the Indians,
in search of their object. I have ascertained, by
trial, that they will live many hours out of water,
even when exposed to the sun's rays.

" Their motion over land is described to be
somewhat like that of the two-footed lizard. They
project themselves forward on their bony arm, by
the elastic spring of the tail exerted side wise.
Their progress is nearly as fast as a man will lei-
surely walk. The strong scuta, or bands, which
envelope their body, must greatly facilitate their
march, in the manner of plates under the belly of
serpents, which are raised and depressed by a vol-
untary power, in some measure performing the of-
fice of feet. It is said that the other species, the
round head, has not been known to attempt such
excursions, although it is capable of living a long
time out of its element ; but as I before observed,
it buries itself in the mud in the manner of the
yarrows, when the water is drying up.

" The Indians say that these fishes carry water

AUGUILEA. 229

with them for a supply on their journey. There
appears to be some truth in this statement ; for I
have observed that the bodies of the hassars do
not get dry like those of other fishes when taken
out of the water ; and if the moisture be absorbed,
or they are wiped dry with a cloth, they have such
a power of secretion, that they become instantly
moist again. Indeed it is scarcely possible to dry
the surface while the fish is living.

" On inspecting an old journal which was kept
during a tour to the Parmia, in 1810, I find that
another species of these mailed fish inhabit the
rapids of the Essequibo (interior of Guiana) one
of which was caught by the Indians while employ-
ed in hauling our canoes over the falls of that
river, and attracted my attention by its curious
structure and vivid coloring. It is remarked in
the note alluded to, that this fish is not only fur-
nished with the common appendages for swim-
ming, but also with four strong bony supports, one
attached to each of the pectoral and belly fins,
(i. e. constituting the first ray of each) by which
the animal creeps on the bottom of the river, and
perhaps where there is little or no water also, be-
ing, as it seems, partly amphibious ; for although
it had received a severe wound on the head, it did
not expire till it had been many hours out of the
water. It has no proper teeth, but short, flexible,

230 APODES.

curved spines (or seta) on the lips ; one row on
the upper, and two on the under lip, (the up-
per jaw short and moveable.) The pectoral fin
has six radii, besides the leg, if I may so term it,
or ambulatory spine. The head and the whole
body, except the thorax, are guarded by a coat of
mail, consisting of strong bony plates, supporting
four longitudinal rows of curved spines on each
side ; color of the body bright reddish yellow, ele-
gantly variegated with black spots ; the fin red at
the extremities. It grows to about a foot in
length.

THE COMMON EEL.

Eels, when kept in fresh water ponds, grow very
large, and are very voracious ; they are known to
swallow frogs and lizards whole, which have been
found in opening large ones. A gentleman at
Twickenam, England, had a large pond, on which
he bred a number of ducks and geese. He was
much astonished by the disappearance of large

AUGUILLA. 231

numbers of goslings and ducklings, as soon as they
took to the water. Having occasion, about this
time, to draw his pond, he found a number of
eels, and on opening them, the undigested remains
of many of the lost birds were found. Eels have
been caught in fresh water ponds, weighing
eighteen and twenty pounds.

They are supposed to be more universally spread
over the globe than any other tribe of animals, with
the exception of man. It is said that none are
seen above the Falls of Niagara, or in Lake Erie.
Some one supposes that all the eels in the inte-
rior visit the sea, annually, and then return from
their pilgrimage to the old spot ; — and it is more-
over asserted, but certainly on doubtful authority,
that if an eel remain habitually in fresh water, it
becomes barren. We do not credit a word of
this ; there is some want of accuracy in the exam-
ination.

Though they have been repeatedly seen fifty
and sixty feet high on the rocks of the cataract,
wending their way up, they never yet succeeded
in the enterprise. Mr Clinton supposes the rea-
son why eels do not exist in Lake Erie, if any
were left there on the subsiding of the waters of
the flood, is because their communication was cut
off from the ocean, and in illustration of his theo-
ry, relates that the Passaic river is formed by the

23*2 APODES.

union of three considerable streams, Rockaway,
Long-Pond, and Ramapough creeks, until a
canal, some years ago, was cut around the great
falls at Peterson, no eel was ever seen in the wa-
ters above. Since that work was completed, the
water abounds with them, distinguished for size
and quality. He further remarks, that in the
spring, elvers or young eels are seen in immense
numbers, ascending these streams.

Eels, in olden times, were believed to be either
hermaphrodites, impregnating themselves, or else
they sprung spontaneously from the mud, by solar
influence. Oppian describes the generation thus :

" Not thus conchs, eels and polypi embrace,
Nor purple lampreys rear their embryo race, —
In selfish coils, hermaphrodite they sit,
And their own power, the vital spume emit, —
Which, gradual diopp'd on sands or slimy mud,
A silver offering renders to the flood."

Mr Jesse says that he has been informed, upon
the authority of a nobleman, that if an eel is found
on land, its head is invariably turned towards the
sea, for which it is always observed to make in the
most direct line possible. If this information is
correct, and there seems to be no reason to doubt
it, it shows that the eel, like the swallow, is pos-
sessed of a strong migratory instinct.

We can ourselves partly confirm this statement,

AUGUILLA. 233

for we have seen an eel more than twenty yards
from a river, making its way to it like a snake
through the grass of a rnoist meadow ; and what
is perhaps more uncommon, we have watched an
eel rising repeatedly to the surface of a stream to
bite off and feed upon the duck-weed floating at
the top.

An amazing number of eels are bred in the two
large ponds in Richmond Park, which is suffi-
ciently evident from the very great quantity of
young ones which migrate from those ponds every
year. We are assured that at nearly the same
day, in the month of May, vast numbers of young
eels, about two inches in length, contrived to get
through the pen-stock of the upper pond, and
then through the channel which led into the low-
er pond, from whence they got through another
pen-stock into a water course, which led them
eventually into the river Thames. They migra-
ted in one connected shoal, and in such prodigious
numbers, that no guess could be given as to their
probable amount.

An annual migration of young eels also takes
place in the river Thames in the month of May ;
and they have generally made their appearance
at Kingston, in their way upwards, about the sec-
ond week in that month, and accident has so de-
termined it, that for several years together it was

234 A F O BE S .

remarked that the tenth of May was the day
of what the fishermen call eel fair ; but they
have been more irregular in their proceedings since
the interruption of the lock at Teddington. These
young eels are about two inches in length, and
they make their approach in one regular and un-
deviating column of about five inches in breadth,
and as thick together as it is possible for them to
be. As the procession generally lasts two or
three days, and as they appear to move at the rate
of nearly two miles and a half an hour, some idea
may be formed of their enormous number. The
line of march is almost universally confined to one
bank of the river, and not on both sides at the
same time ; but, from some instinctive or capri-
cious impulse, they will cross the river, and
change the side without any apparent reason for
doing so.

When the column arrives at the entrance of a
tributary stream which empties itself into the riv-
er, a certain portion of the column will continue
to progress up the tributary stream, and the main
phalanx either cross the river to the opposite bank,
or will, after a stiff struggle to oppose the force of
the tributary branch in its emptying process, cross
the mouth of this estuary, and regain its original
line of march on the same side of the river. In
consequence of the young eels dispersing them-

AUGUILLA. 235

selves from time to time, as occasion offers, in the
manner above described, the shoal must impercep-
tibly lessen until the whole have disposed of them-
selves in different places.

I have not yet been able to ascertain at what
distance from Kingston the shoal has been seen.
The locks at Hampton, Sunbury, &c, must, how-
ever, retard their progress upwards. These young
eels are easily taken : and persons who want to
stock their ponds with them have only to lower a
bucket into the midst of the shoal, which many
persons do, who reside in the neighborhood of the
river, and a sufficient number is immediately taken
to answer their purpose.

There is no doubt but that many of these little
animals perish during their progress ; but the
numbers which are annually taken in our rivers
show that a sufficient quantity escape to stock
them abundantly. * * * The most speedy meth-
ed of killing an eel is by putting it into tepid
water.

On the marshy borders of the ocean, and at the
entrance of large, shallow bays, and the mouths of
rivers, where there is a deep soft mud, eels abound
beyond all human calculation.

Three varieties of the eel, only, are familiarly
known in Massachusetts ; yet it is very probable
several others exist, of which we have, at present,

236 APODES.

no knowledge. The mud-eel is exceedingly com-
mon. Perhaps there is no one fish, the genera-
tive process of which has given naturalists more
vexation than this ; hence the old and vulgar no-
tion that there was no distinction of sex, and that
they originated spontaneously from the mud. Let
it be understood, however, that modern persever-
ance has settled the question, as the males can
readily be distinguished from the females. They
are viviparous, and are impregnated as all carti-
laginous fishes are. *

That the eel is wonderfully tenacious of life,
has become a proverb, — live as long as an eel.
Hours after being deprived of the skin, as may be
daily noticed in the market, they continue to ex-
hibit violent and rapid contortions.

In the year 1803, the water from an overflown
quick-silver mine, at Idua, in Austria, having been

* Male crabs may be distinguished from the females by the
organization of the flap or apron, on the breast of both, and
yet this has been a long disputed point, like the quarrel about
the sex of eels. That on the female is large, loose, broad and
easily opened when the animal is alive. On the male, it is
smaller, firmer, and less easily opened ; under it are two
thread-like organs, but in the female there are two orifices,
tipped with cartilaginous rings. En V union sexuelle, Itsft-
melles couche.es surleurs dos recoivcnt ces cxcroissances fili-
formes dans les deux ouvertures ou 'vulvce. This is the only
example within our knowledge, of a double procreative appa-
ratus.

AUGUILLA. 237

pumped out and carried into the river Idua, that
river became so impregnated with vitriolic acid,
mercury, and iron ochre, that all the fish were de-
stroyed, save the eels, which were found uninjured,
and seemed to bid defiance to every thing but ac-
tual roasting or boiling.

So well known is the eel, that it is unnecessary
to give a more minute account of its external ap-
pearance, t

A gentleman of veracity, residing on Cape Cod,
informs us that in the spring an eel makes it ap-
pearance in that section of the country, which
from its peculiar locality is called the sand-eel.
This fish is found at different places in the sand, at
a distance from the water. Probably, from his
remarks, this fish resembles, both in conformation
and habits, the hassar. He has not been success-
ful in obtaining a specimen, as at the time of wri-
ting, they were not to be found. It is also very
possible it may be the ammodytcs tobianus, or
sand lance, of Europe.

Aqueducts, which have their origin in still wa-
ter, as ponds, for example, should be carefully
guarded by metallic strainers, otherwise eels will
course through the pipes to the other extremity.
They seem to have a predilection for such hid-
ing places, but as they cannot turn round in the
log, nor make their exit the other way, vast ex-

238 APODES.

pense may be incurred in searching for the ob
struction, — the eel sliding along, from point to
point, as the workmen proceed. Such is their
tenacity of life, that they could live years togeth-
er, in this way, — therefore there is no hope that
death and dissolution of the body, will speedily
remedy the evil. A few years since, in taking up
a joint of the aqueduct in Boston, which conducts
the water from Jamaica Pond, in Roxbury, an
eel nearly two feet in length was taken from the
log, that quite filled its calibre.

Prof. Hitchcock has furnished us with a speci-
men of the silver-eel, so called, in the vicinity of
Amherst College, which, though a little smaller
than the common mud-eel, precisely resembles it,
and therefore we are inclined to the opinion that
the shining color on the sides, which has given it
the name, is an accidental circumstance.

In the salt ponds of Martha's Vineyard, where
the tide water flows in, an eel is taken, called the
meshaiu-eel which has been supposed to be pecu-
liar to that region. David Eckley, Esq. of Boston,
who has a better and more practical knowledge of
scientific angling, than any gentleman in the cir-
cle of our acquaintance, has given it as his opinion
that this is a new species. Not having it in our
power to procure a specimen, at this particular
juncture, — when the compositor is constantly re-

AUGUILLA. 239

quiring manuscript, we hope to collect the facts for
a future period.

In the neighborhood of Montreal, in Canada,
the eel fishery is conducted on an immense scale ;
thousands upon thousands may be seen in the pens
on the banks of the river, writhing and twisting
like so many anacondas, waiting their turn to
be slaughtered. They are packed in barrels, well
salted ; and .great quantities are also smoked, &c.
not only for home consumption, but for exporta-
tion. This part of the trade is the most intolera-
bly disgusting process a person of any sensibility
can witness. The St Lawrence eel is the conger,
some of which are several feet in length, and near-
ly as large as a man's arm.

The Conversations Lexicon says, that there are
numerous instances on record of eels having
attacked and overpowered boys in the water.
In their native element, they can certainly exert
prodigious strength. An oil is tried out of them,
which burns as well as the best whale oil.

A vulgar notion exists in this country, very gen-
erally, that the skins, tied round the body of an
individual, are powerful anti-spasmodics. Indeed,
it is quite common to see persons bathing, with
one of them twisted round the leg to keep off the
cramp.

Eels are the boa-constrictors of the ocean,

240 AP.ODES.

oftentimes overpowering their prey by suddenly
coiling round the bodies of fishes, whose bones and
flesh are bruised instantly into jelly.

On the whole, we view the eel in the light of
a water-serpent, being the connecting link be-
tween purely aquatic and amphibious reptiles.
That the flesh is nutritious cannot be denied, and
so is the rattle-snake, and eaten too, by the abo-
rigines with as good a relish as the epicurian
swallows his potted eels. Though we are unwill-
ing to eat them ourselves, simply from the influence
of unpleasant associations, yet, as the toper said
of the flies, when he put them back into the tum-
bler, though we don't like to swallow them, we do
not know but others may.*

After the formation of ice, in the autumn, eels
bury themselves two and three feet deep in the
mud, where they remain in a partially torpid state
till the returning warmth of spring ; they are so
easily affected by cold that individuals rarely leave
their quarters, unless forced to by the fishermen.
At the commencement of winter, multitudes of

*" Up jumped the Bacchanalian crew, on this,
Taking it very much amiss,

Swearing, and in the attitude to smite —
• Lord,' cries the man, with gravely lifted eyes,

' Though I dont like to swallow flies,
/ did not know but others might.' "

Peter Pindar.

ANGUILLA. 241

people may be seen spearing eels through holes cut
in the ice. The occasional appearance of them
in pools, and inland basins, is referable to their
migratory propensity, which satisfactorily explains
what the farmers have sometimes considered
a phenomenon. We are assured that in ex-
tremely cold weather, they exhibit an electrical
property.

It has been affirmed that the gastric juice of
several fishing birds has no solvent power on the
living eel, when swallowed ; and it has moreover
been asserted, on good authority, that it has been
seen to make its escape uninjured, from the her-
on, after having been swallowed. Admitting this
to be true, it will account, to some extent, for the
universal distribution of this species of eel, not
only over the New England States, but over the
interior of this vast country. That birds convey
the spawn of fishes, as they carry the seeds of
plants, over the whole continent, is as certain as
any fact in the range of natural history.

In the bay of New York, this eel has been
known to weigh twelve pounds. The largest on
record in this country, was caught in a bay of
Long Island, and weighed sixteen and a half
pounds. In Boston harbor they rarely exceed
five pounds, though specimens are occasionally
exhibited, a yard in length.
16

242 A P O D E s .

Eel fisheries are conducted on a surprising scale
in some parts of Europe. In the Baltic, such vast
numbers are taken, that they are salted for expor-
tation. Two thousand have been caught in Jut-
land at one sweep of the net. Sixty thousand
are said to have been collected from the Garonne,
with one net, in a single day. With us, they are
usually taken with a spear, or in an eel-pot, con-
structed something like a rat-trap. Being well
baited with garbage, the eel squeezes through
the door, but cannot return again. In this man-
ner, bushels may be secured in a night.

It is not uncommon to have them take the hook,
though few are thus caught. Usually, they are
sold in the market, and neighboring towns, fresh,
for immediate consumption.

While in a state of infancy, the dog-fish de-
stroys immense numbers ; even the skate, which
is truly voracious, seems to form an alliance with
the dull, anchorite lobster, for the mutual purpose
of destroying the young fry of their worst enemy.
This strongly borders on a spirit of revenge. As
soon as the eel is fully grown, it seems to search
instinctively and unremittingly for young skates,
often not larger than a cent, and very gelatinous.
The lobster, however, even in adult age, is par-
ticularly unfortunate once a year, when its shell
comes off, in being exposed to the irresistible at-
tacks of the eel's teeth.

CONGER. 243

When the lobster has the premonition that this
process of shedding his coat of mail is about
to take place, he endeavors to conceal himself in
the dark recesses of the rocks, beyond the discov-
ery of those who, like the ass in the fable, take
pleasure in kicking the dead lion. Thousands upon
thousands, however, are torn to pieces during the
few days that they are without a shell. In about
seven days another one is elaborated, and he again
sallies forth in the majest} of his strength, putting
to flight, by his very appearance, the rabble mob
that sought his life.

GEN. CONGER.

Conger Eel, — Murcena Conger. Only occa-
sionally found in the harbors, though the mackerel
fishermen get them in deep water. One specimen
only has been obtained by the writer, and that
was unfortunately lost, by breaking the glass which
contained it. Though pronounced fine eating, its
color and shape are certainly forbidding. Some
have been scooped up, weighing a hundred weight.
The color is a yellowish white, mottled with dirty
spots. The mouth and throat large, the neck
thick, but soon becomes slender and snake-like.
Teeth in both jaws. In the united dorsal, caudal
and anal fin, there are said to be one hundred
and thirtynine rays.

244 APODES.

The specimen of which we are speaking was
only about eighteen inches long, taken in the sea-
grass, and very spiteful and active. Its lips were
thick, and somewhat cartilaginous. On the whole,
it resembled the blenny. Sir Humphrey Davy
speaks of having seen the conger ten feet long.

Conger eels are occasionally obtained by the
fishermen, six and seven feet in length, as large
as a man's arm. However, on the coast of Mas-
sachusetts, such specimens are not so frequent as
farther south.

A bill was reported in the Massachusetts Legis-
lature, on Wednesday, March 13th, 1833, — (we
have been particular as to the exact period, be-
cause it may hereafter be celebrated as an eera in
legislation) " to preserve the eel-fishery at Mus-
keeket Island, in Nantucket." Surely, this must
be considered the ne plus ultra of parliamentary
wisdom, — enacting laws to prevent the extermin-
ation of a fish, infinitely more numerous than any
other species, and which it would be utterly im-
possible to exterminate.

The City of Boston, with this precedent,
ought at once to pass an ordinance in behalf, and
for the preservation of the cod on the banks of
Newfoundland, — and another, forbidding all good
and orderly disposed people from supping on fe-
male lobsters, lest it should ultimately diminish

CONGER. 245

the number required in the literary emporium, by
destroying the genuine breeders of this princi-
pal ingredient of a salad. But here follow-
some of the cogent reasons for this enlightened
effort, which is destined to become so renowned in
the subsequent history of our ancient Common-
wealth.

It wTas stated, we understand, in the House, that
fishermen from Cape Cod wTent over and caught
a great many barrels of these fish for exporta-
tion. Mr Cole, a representative from O ,

Barnstable county, remarked, says a gentleman
present, that some ten or fifteen years since, an
immense number of eels were caught in the coves
at Orleans, and that he has known a thousand
bushels to be taken, often, in a day. The practice
was, after the toil of acquiring, to score the skins
and hang the eels in the air till they were dried
hard ; then to take them down and split and salt
them ; after this, they were commonly roasted
for family consumption, as occasion required.

Apprehension being entertained that these fish
would be annihilated, at that place, if such great
catches were allowed, an act was obtained to au-
thorize the selectmen of the town to regulate the
fishery, and now the permits range from three doz-
en to two bushels, for an individual, in a day, the
proper season. Some of the eels taken there,

246 APODES.

measure two and a half inches in diameter. So
much for the notes of our obliging correspondent.
The witty editor of the Boston Evening Tran-
script, however, the day after the ever memora-
ble piscatorial triumph, goes on to say : — " A bill
has passed the Senate, ' to preserve the Eel fishe-
ry at Muskeeket Island, within the town of Nan-
tucket.' We like this. We are glad the Mus-
'kee'ket interest is carefully looked after. Why
should not eels enjoy protection as well as ale-
wives and herrings ? There are some provisions
in the bill, which may be thought arbitrary, and
perhaps be resisted by the Muskeeket democrats,
if any of those odd fish are there resident. ' No
person shall take,' says the act, l from any creek,
cove or harbor, on the Island, more than three doz-
en eels at one time, without permit of the select-
men, under penalty of fifty cents for each and ev-
ery additional dozen so taken.' The Muskeekets
and their neighbors are a shrewd and slippery race,
and we venture to wager a skin, that no man, wo-
man or child will take less than three dozen and
eleven, provided they can catch so many. Be-
sides, as they may take as many eels as they can,
and skin and behead them as fast as they are
taken, a question might arise whether having only
the decapitated and skinless bodies in their pos-
session, the law would hold them guilty of hav-

CONGER 247

ing entire fishes, contrary to the statute. This
may be a painful subject of consideration for the
whole Court."

Mr Ruggles, of Barre, was one of those inde-
pendent legislators, who conceived that there were
too many ornithological and icthyological laws al-
ready passed. When the bill to restrain the tak-
ing of eels at Nantucket was under consideration
in the House of Representatives, he concluded a
speech, touching the momentous subject, with the
following original doggerel :

u Mankind have grown so wise of late,
And rule so strict their wishes, —
That legislators, short of work,
Make laws for birds and fishes."

The poor pickerel, alewives, and Taunton her-
ring, have undoubtedly felt a deep solicitude and
sympathy for the long neglected eels, on which
such a vast population have been feeding since the
landing of the pilgrims, — but thanks to a humane
General Court, viri graves et docti, of sad
and learned men, those unfeeling Cape Coders
are now restrained by the majesty of the law, to
three dozen in a day; enough, in all conscience,
for a common man ; yes, the appetites of those
monsters will now be regulated by the conserva-
tory regulations of the conscript fathers of the
town, — the selectmen !

248 ACANTHOPTERYGII.

It is to be regretted that the happy eels cannot
be made thoroughly acquainted with the delight-
ful intelligence, which gives them the privilege of
multiplying ad libitum, — some convenient months
in the year, perhaps the exact time when the
honorable gentleman who originated the brilliant
project, (probably un connoisseur en anguilles,) is
from home, engaged in manufacturing statutes.
There is nothing in this intellectual age, (amicus
curia, the delighted eels may exclaim,) like hav-
ing a friend at Court.

ORDER IX. — ACANTHOPTERYGII.

In this order are included several distinct fami-
lies, the first of which, Tcenioides, have long, thin
bodies, with a dorsal fin the entire length ; but at
present are not known to exist on this coast.

In the second, Gobioides, the fishes are distin-
guished by slender, flexible dorsal spines ; an in-
testinal canal of uniform calibre, and totally desti-
tute of swimming bladders. The characteristics
of each will be noticed as we progress.

ANARCHICAS. 249

FAMILY II. GOBIOIDES.

GEN. ANARCHICAS.

Wolf-Fish, or Sea-Wolf — Anarchicas Lu-
pus. In character, the wolf-fish is a voracious
shark, being violent, and in proportion to its size,
exceedingly powerful and quarrelsome. The av-
erage length is three feet, though there is not a
season passing by, that individuals are not discov-
ered over four feet. The skin is smooth, glassy,
and of the color of sheet lead ; but further south,
the color is a light kind of gray, bordering upon a
yellowish hue under the abdomen.

In July and August, when the water is so warm
that they venture into the channels between the
islands, there is a clearer whiteness of the skin on
the belly than when drawn from deep water. Two
large pectoral fins, strongly marked, close to the
gills, and sharp, conical front teeth, projecting
beyond the lips, will first attract the notice of the
observer.

Within the first, is a second row of still smaller
teeth, but they are rather irregularly placed, mak-
ing about eighteen in the upper, and two thirds as
many in the under jaw.

By another prominent appendage, the wolf-fish
may be readily distinguished, viz ; an upright,

250 GOBIOIDES.

broad, stiff and sharp dorsal fin, running the entire
length of the back ; and on the under side, the
anal fringe reaches to the tail. In the tail are
thirteen rays, and six in the branchial membrane.
Within the mouth, the roof is mottled with dark,
ferruginous patches ; and the palate bones, far-
ther inward towards the margin of the sesophagus,
are set with molar blocks, approximating, some-
what, in configuration and structure, double teeth.
With these the sea-wolf crushes clams, crabs, oys-
ters, lobsters, and the bones of other fishes. These
palatine enamelled blocks are sometimes found in
a fossil state, and are called toad-stones, or bufo-
nites.

THE SEA WOLF.

MkSSLA

Usually, the wolf-fish is found in deep water,
from a quarter to ten miles from the shore, princi-
pally on the feeding ground of the cod. When
brought on deck, they erect the spines of all their
fins, thrash violently with the tail, and bite what-
ever may be within their reach. Even in the wa-

ANARCHICAS. 251

ter they will snap most spitefully at an anchor,
which they are passing, and when enraged, they
manifest their ferocious disposition by repeat-
ed attacks on a chain cable. We have uni-
formly remarked that the fishermen call this the
cat-fish, at the north, and even in this section of
Massachusetts.

No use seems to be made of them, notwith-
standing that vast numbers are taken. Even in
baiting lobsters, which are so voracious that they
feed upon almost any animal substance with
which the trap may be loaded, this fish does not
seem to be used. Yet it is reputed to be very
good food. The Greenlanders eat it fresh, and
also prepare it by drying; — smoked, they have
the flavor of salmon.

When the population of the country is about
ten times its present amount, a vast number of an-
imals, now discarded from the catalogue of edibles,
will necessarily be considered in the light of lux-
uries and indispensable necessaries. The skate
is rejected here, altogether, on account of its hid-
eous form, but in foreign countries it is regarded
as a wholesome dish.

In the Levant, the cuttle fish, (squid,) is an
article of extensive trade, variously prepared ; and
yet it is a horrible object, when fully grown, ex-
tending its flexible, worm-like arms in all direc-

252 GOBIOIDES.

tions, to grasp everything within its reach. In
the marsh ponds before alluded to, in speaking of
the neshaw-eel, at Martha's Vineyard, it is said
there are an abundance of oysters, but of a quality
that totally forbids their use. Necessity will pro-
bably hereafter compel people to eat them, and it
is worth the while to institute some experi-
ments with reference to that object. Were they
transplanted to the mouths of rivers, and suffered
to remain one or two seasons, it is altogether pro-
bable that they would increase in size, and become
so totally changed in quality, as to be tender,
nutritious and perfectly wholesome.

All the sources of profit and economy arising
from the fisheries, are not yet developed, in this
country, nor will they be, till absolute necessity
obliges individuals to investigate these rich and
unexplored resources of our country. From the
squid, cartloads of which may be raked up in a
day, at some particular places, the Chinese pro-
cure the material for manufacturing india ink ; and
the Sicilians, from the same liquor, prepare a rich
valuable kind of soup.

When this creature is closely pursued, and there
is no other way of escape, it spirts this black fluid
into the water, which in a moment is so generally
diffused, as to resemble a dark cloud, through
which the pursuer cannot see, and thus the cuttle-

ANARCHIC AS. 253

fish makes its escape. From the gall of several
voracious families, a valuable water color might
be prepared, in quantity equal to the requirements
of the paper stainers. Isinglass, which is nothing
more than the swimming bladder of the sturgeon,
might be easily made from the cod, haddock
and whiting, to answer the demands of the mar-
ket.

Even the stomachs, well washed, and neatly
dried, are no way inferior. And finally, the of-
fals, as well as all the varieties of un-edible tribes,
spread over barren land, either sandy, or cold, on
account of their excessive humidity, are more ben-
eficial, used as manure, than any other substance.
The oily matter unites the particles of sand, and
constitutes a kind of flooring to build vegetation
upon ; and in the other case, the heat evolved in
the course of rapid decomposition, promotes the
growth of whatever may be rooted in the soil.

FAMILY III. LABROIDES.

An oblong body, covered with scales, is a type
of this family ; there is a single dorsal fin, consid-
erably wide on some individuals, maintained in an
erect position, by strong, bony spines ; the lips are

254 LABROIDES.

fleshy, and the pharynx, set with either broad or
sharp teeth.

GEN. TAUTOGA.

Tautog, — Labrus Tautoga. Within there-
collection of gentlemen now living, the tautog was
unknown in the harbor of Boston. A subscrip-
tion was successfully undertaken for bringing
several of them alive in cars, from Newport,
Rhode Island, which were supposed the first of
the species which had ever been to the eastward
of the Cape.

It is very certain that the water in Boston har-
bor is altogether too salt for a variety of fishes,
which are known to be very common on the south
side of the Cape, in Long Island sound, and the
waters contiguous to New York. The greatest
variety is invariably found, where the largest
bodies of fresh water are emptied into the sea.
The mingling of the river and the ocean modifies
the qualities of both, so that it is found, on careful
observation, to be particularly favorable to the ex-
istence of classes that could not long endure the
constitutional effects of either alone. Oysters are
to be ranked among the orders that require a mix-
ture of these two kinds of water.

No fact is better established than this, — that
oysters do not propagate on a major part of the

TAUTOGA. 255

coast of Massachusetts, though when brought
from New Jersey, and thrown into the mud of the
bays, they increase in size remarkably fast. In
some rivers, a few miles from the ocean, the Med-
ford, for example, in the neighborhood of Boston,
oysters once abounded in considerable plenty, but
circumstances have finally conspired to reduce
them so much, that they are at present hardly con-
sidered to exist there at all. The tautog is one of
the fish constituted for that mixture of salt and fresh
water, and hence it will never flourish, where there
are so few rivers as in the neighborhood of Bos-
ton.

Tautogs are highly prized, but the Boston mar-
ket, allowed to be the first in New England, is but
poorly supplied with them ; whenever they are for
sale, it seems to be the result of accident, as no
particular effort is made to search for them exclu-
sively.

Before us lies a specimen, weighing seven
pounds, washed on shore after a severe storm.
Tautog, is a Mohegan Indian word, meaning black,
and it is familiarly called black-fish, and black-
bass. Several species are known in the southern
market, viz: L. T. fusca, L. T. rubens, andi.
T. alia.

To a lover of good fish, the exhibition of the
tautog, as we have observed them in the New

256

LABROIDES.

York market, swimming at the moment of sale,
must be particularly interesting.

As it respects color, the tautog, though denom-
inated black, is in reality, a dusky, smoky brown,
only really black on the back. The lips, lower
jaw and abdomen, are of a dingy white ; the mouth
is small, and the lips thick, retractile, and expos-
ing the front teeth, which project from the upper
jaw; the two middle ones are large, but the re-
maining, as they run back, are graduated in size,
becoming quite small. The tongue is white, pret-
ty smooth, and closely embedded between the

THE TAUTOG.

bones of the jaw ; the tail is entire, the middle
ray being strong and stiff; gill cover smooth, with-
out scales, and not serrated on the margin. Deep
in the fauces is a cluster of broad teeth, for the
obvious purpose of crushing shells ; the back is
considerably arched, and the belly prominent.
There are in the dorsal fin seventeen naked

TAUTOGA. 257

spines, projecting their points above the web, and
two spinous rays behind the vent.

Those who are best acquainted with the quali-
ties of the tautog, will acknowledge that it is far
from being handsomely formed. The projecting
teeth, the narrow head, rolling lips and dorsal
spears, are somewhat forbidding points ; but the
various ways in which the cook presents it, does
away the first unfavorable impressions. It has
long been esteemed a delicate, nutritious, finely
flavored food, superior to most of the edible species
in this section of the country. Baking and boil-
ing are said to be the preferable modes of cook-
ing it.

The tautog abounds in the vicinity of Long
Island, near New York, and probably rarely leaves
the salt water ; like the sturgeon, and other ana-
dromous fishes, it has not been detected in any of
the rivers emptying into Long Island sound. In
the vicinity of rocks, reefs jutting into the ocean,
and over rocky bottoms, are the localities where
the fishermen seek it. It is said, that in cars, the
tautog may be fattened, and much improved in
flavor.

After severe cold weather commences, it is a
curious fact in the history of this fish, that a mem-
brane forms over the vent, entirely closing it, and
food is no longer required, — indeed they refuse
17

'258 LABROIDES.

it, till the returning warmth of spring. When the
dog-wood blossoms, (cornus florida,) in April, it
is a sign that the tautog has a returning appetite ;
at least, this is the vulgar opinion. The New
York fishermen, says the late Dr Mitchell, are
governed in this respect by the chesnut leaves,
when there are no dog-wood bushes in their
neighborhoods.

" When chesnut leaves are as big as a thumb nail,
Then bite the black-fish without fail ;
But when the leaves are as long as a span,
Then catch black-fish if you can."

A thunder shower, accompanied with lightning,
is said invariably to disperse them from their ac-
customed places of resort, and a northeast wind is
a sure indication of poor success in the sport of
fishing for them.

In the New York market, we are informed that
several varieties are exhibited, viz :

The labrus tautoga fusca, having bands and
zones of a brown color ; labrus tautoga rubens,
with reddish hues, giving the fish a changeable
color ; and lastly, the labrus tautoga alia, mot-
tled and clouded.

We are fully of the opinion, from our own ex-
amination in the market at New York, where all
these varieties are sold, that the difference of com-
plexion is altogether an accidental affair, depend-

coricus. 259

ing on the age, or influence which the water, at
particular localities, has on the skin, and that only
one species exists in this or that portion of the
country.

GEN. CORICUS, — CHOGSET.

Blue Perch, Cunner, Nipper, Bergall,
Blue-Fish, and Chogset, — Labrus Coricus,
vel. Chogset. Since the commencement of this
little volume, no one species has given us more
trouble and perplexity in the classification than
this. It is admitted that it is wholly unknown in
Europe, at least so far as respects the color.

Chogset is an Indian name, Bergall is the New
York, Perch the Boston, and Cunner. its univer-
sal cognomen the further we go to the east.
Sometimes it is ten inches in length, but usually
varies from three inches to eight.

On this coast, it may always be recognised by
its bluish color, approaching a dark green, varying
however, by the manner in which the scales re-
ceive the rays of light. When drawn from deep
water, the green evidently predominates. About
the wharves, they are not as large as on the cod
ground, weighing from three ounces, to about one
pound. The fish is probably better developed
here than at the south of the Cape, the water be-
ing both colder and Salter, qualities which are con-
ducive to its growth.

260 LABROIDES.

The mouth is small, lips readily turn back from
the teeth, which are sharp, small and rounded at
the base, being not far from sixteen in each jaw,
projecting at different angles. On the back is one
long, stiff rayed fin, which is erected or laid back
at the pleasure of the fish, often troublesome, on
that account, in disengaging it from the hook, as
the fingers are sometimes severely wounded by
the points of the spines, of which there are
eighteen. The lateral line is not always distinct ;
gill cover in three pieces ; caudal fin nearly square
at the end, pectorals broad, strong, and armed
with naked spines ; and the skin covered with
small, hard scales.

This fish is one of the most common on the at-
lantic coast of New England, taken in all weather
and at all places, where the tide ebbs and flows
freely, from spring till autumn.

This fish is the vexation of anglers, being
always at hand to nibble the bait, and too ingenious
and active in picking the hook, to be caught, un-
less the apparatus is well prepared for it. A
small, twisted hook, well covered with the mus-
cular part of a clam, is the most successful bait,
and the fishermen should begin his operations on
the first of the flood.

Millions on millions are scooped up in nets,
very similar in construction to the metallic hoop-

coricus. 261

ed purses. Being lowered in a still cove, where
they are moving about in prodigious shoals, they
rush into the bag to snatch at the floating food ;
as the man raises it he shuts the clasps, and thus
draws a bushel into the boat at once.

To prepare these fish for the table it is custom-
ary to strip the skin off entirely, leaving the flesh
white and delicate. For frying they are excellent.
Boys are everywhere seen at the docks and on
the bridges, about Boston, in the season, enjoying
the delightful sport of drawing up the never fail-
ing perch. One cause of this great plenty, we
apprehend, arises from the circumstance that
other fishes are unwilling to molest them, on ac-
count of the dangerous effects of the spines.

It is pretended that there is a remarkable varie-
ty of the blue-perch, — having a reddish shade
all over the body. For ourselves, we do not
credit it ; there seems to be a strange ambition
influencing some of our naturalists, to discover
new species, which never existed except in their
own distempered imaginations. To all appear-
ance, the perch or cunner is the tautog in minia-
ture, and if it were black it would be supposed
the young of that fish.

Weak-Fish, Squeteague, or Sqjjetee, —
Labrus Squeteague. Unpoetical as the name is,

262 LABROIDES.

the fish is much valued, though few seem to be ta-
ken to the north of Holmes' Hole. The teeth are
tolerably strong, — the pharyngeal patches resem-
bling grinders ; the lips are thick and doubled ;
operculum without spines or scales ; mouth wide,
accompanied with fine labial teeth; two dorsal fins,
in the first of which are eight rays ; sixteen in the
pectoral and seventeen in the caudal fin. The
lateral line is continued quite into the inter-spi-
nous web ; nostrils double, and the lowest jaw the
longest. Another name for the squeteague, is
" checout^ of aboriginal origin.

We know of nothing particularly interesting in
the character of this fish. It appears by the ob-
servations of fishermen, that it never visits rivers,
but resembles in habits the tautog, being partial
to similar grounds. Vast quantities are carried to
the city of New York, where it is considered val-
uable, as a common small fish, though, like the
blue-perch or bergall, it is presented of all inter-
mediate sizes, from three inches to twelve. It
is taken both by lining and seining, and because
it makes such feeble exertion and resistance, in be-
ing drawn by a hook, it has received the appella-
tion of weak-fish.

Spotted-Squetee, — Labrus Sque. Macu-
latus. This is nearly the same ; if there are oth-

CRENILABRUS. 263

er varieties we have not succeeded in procuring
them. The fins are somewhat brownish, and dark
spots are indistinctly seen on the sides,

GEN. CRENILABRUS.

Blue-Back, — Crenilabrus MeruJ a. This ap-
pears to be the perca varia of Dr Mitchell,
which is an abundant and savory article at New
York, and usually caught at Sandy Hook. It is
only occasionally found in Massachusetts, under
the name of the blue-back, in reference, probably,
to its color. The length varies from ten inches
to sixteen, having large scales, and u ndivided cau-
dal fin. In the branchial membrane are eight
rays ; pectoral fin eighteen, ventral six, dorsal
twenty one, anal eleven, and caudal seventeen rays.

A fish very similar, crenilabrus lapina, of the
Mediterranean, is spotted in three rows, on the
side, and at Sandy Hook, it is speckled with black
and white, from the head to the tail. A differ-
ence in the quality of the water, in this instance,
certainly gives the New Yorkers the advantage
over us, in possessing an excellent fish, which,
when it wanders into this vicinity, is not only
changed in color, but rendered impotent and bar-
ren.

264 PERCOIDES

FAMILY IV. PERCOIDES.

By close examination, it will be observed that
the perches, says a writer to whom we are indebt-
ed for the discovery, have the dorsal and anal fin
slightly scaled, and supported, anteriorly, by sharp
spines, the foremost being sometimes folded back
and concealed in the scales and dorsal furrow.
The body is covered with scales, which are gene-
rally large in proportion to the magnitude of the
fish ; the intestines are large and provided with
coecums, but the swimming bladder is disconnect-
ed with the stomach by air ducts. The sparoi-
des have one dorsal fin running the entire length of
the back, but the perseques have two, or rather
there is a tolerably well marked division between
the spinous and adipose portions of the organ.

GEN. SCORP^NA.

Major-Devil, Yellow Sculpin, — Scorpce-
na Porcus, [Lin. vel,flava.] Whether this out-
rageously ugly fish gets the name of major-devil
because it presents a more horrible aspect than
the cottus family, it is not important to inquire.
Linnaeus, in this genus, included fish with tuber-
culated or spinous heads, pendant cirri, and other
cranial accompaniments, conducing to a truly hor-
rible appearance.

SCORP.ENA. 265

The specimen before us is not far from fifteen
inches long, — thick through the head and shoul-
ders ; gills enormous, gape of the siouth wide, lips
tendon-like, fins broad and stiff, and the body of
a dirty yellowish complexion, having the appear-
ance of being partially coated with patches of
short moss.

Shaw gives a vivid description of the scorpaena
horrida, a native of the Indian Seas, which is so
absolutely forbidding, as to realize to the eye all
that the most vivid imagination considers horrible.
At times we are inclined to believe the one be-
fore us a variety of that species. The margin of
the lips are fringed with scolloped, membranous
ribbons, hanging down and floating like oak-leaves,
so that it would seem difficult to swallow, with-
out drawing them into the mouth. We cannot
explain their use, yet it is certain they subserve
some important purpose. The head is large, cov-
ered with tubercles, broad bumps and depress-
ions.

In the dorsal fin are twentynine rays ; the first
sixteen are stiff, but the remainder are of the
character that would place the fish among the per-
seques. There are twenty rays in the caudal, fif-
teen in the anal, and three in the ventral fins ; the
gill membrane has seven rays. When the mouth is
open, and put upon the stretch, as noticeable when

266 PERCOIDES.

the scorpaena is first drawn from the water, the
top of the aesophagus may be distinctly observed ;
the gills are blo»ted, the fins spread, and the writh-
ing of its body, and snapping of its jaws, to-
gether with the singular appearance of its wrinkled,
loose skin, apparently much too large for the body,
actually shock the spectator.

There are infinitely more marvellous animal for-
mations in the ocean than on the land ; in some
instances the departure from the ordinary laws
of symmetry is exceedingly striking. In this
case, we involuntarily associate the idea of hor-
rible propensities, and actually excite a tremor of
nervous disgust, by the mere power of imagina-
tion.

Scorpcena Scrofa, — having cirri under the
eyes, and dangling from the lateral line, are some-
times taken in fishing in very deep water. All
the specimens we have seen prove conclusively
that they plough through the mud in search of
shells, cuttle-fish, sea-eggs, as they are called, and
the like kinds of food, and it is not improbable,
that the leaves which float about the body so con-
ceal it, that the appearance is that of a roll of
weeds, — thus enabling the scorpaena more cer-
tainly and effectually to steal upon its prey.

MUGIL 267

Scorpcena Gibbosa, — another, by no means a
distant relation of the family, with forked spines
and broad pectoral fins, is also taken under sim-
ilar circumstances. It would seem that they lurk
about the feeding places of other more active spe-
cies ; and it is quite probable, that they are suc-
cessful in seizing the cod, the gape of the mouth,
even in those of ten inches, being large enough to
receive the entire head of a good sized one. They
could not swallow a morsel so large, but by killing
the fish they might afterwards feed upon the car-
case leisurely, in the dark regions where they are
unquestionably organised to thrive.

GEN. MUGIL.

From the following characteristics, the tribe of
mullets will be readily known, viz : " the head is
depressed, broad and scaly," says Stark. " The
ventral fins are under the abdomen, and there are
two short, distant dorsal fins, of which the first or
spinous, is further back than the ventrals, and the
second answers to the anal?; mouth with fleshy,
crenulated lips, lower jaw with a carination in the
middle, entering into a corresponding groove in
the upper ; no teeth ; branchial membrane with
three rays."

Besides having a rich grayish color, longitudi-
nally shaded by brownish parallel lines, the abdo-

268 PERCOIDES.

men is silvery, and the fins are tipped with a live-
ly blue shade. Its figure is really elegant, there
being a peculiar plumpness, and at the same time
hardness, invariably indicating a delicate table fish.
We have not yet obtained a mullet in the waters
of Massachusetts, though we are assured one
species does exist.

In the Literary and Philosophical Society's
Transactions of New York, we find mention made
of the New Y.ork mullet, mugil albula, having
twelve or thirteen rows of scales on a side. Not-
withstanding the minute description there given,
we think that there must be some mistake, and
our private opinion is, that no other species than
the red mullet is a native fish ; yet we have been
particular in the scientific description, that it may
lead to further examination.

If mullets are ever detected on these shores,
they are to be sought for in rocky localities, where
the water is clear and pure. There are places
where all experience teaches that particular tribes
have a certain penchant, as the halibut for one, and
the perches for another. Let the depredations be
ever so flagrant on the colony's grounds, they are
rarely discouraged, but endeavor to maintain their
station by the mass of inhabitants, whose front is
presented to the persevering enemy. In this re-

MUGIL. 269

spect, they resemble, in habits, the gregarious
wild cattle of South America.

Careful observation has confirmed the declara-
tion of the old settlers on the shores of Lake
Champlain, that one species of fishes is found on
one side of the lake, and never, under any circum-
stances, on the other. Dog-fish, and others of sim-
ilar properties, are the wolves of all inshore marine
fishes, — forever prowling in the vicinity of such
piscatory settlements, stealing and mangling the
victims that accidentally fall in their way. At
times, those marauders get the ascendency, by the
destruction they make, — but the moment the
citadel is taken, they forsake the premises, in
search of another to wage war upon. As the dog-
fish abounds at the north side of the Cape, it is
possible thay have broken up the settlements
which otherwise might be formed.

'' Deep in the wave is a coral grove,
Where the purple mullet and gold-fish rove."

While contemplating the social character of cer-
tain families of the ocean, it has occurred to us, that
some of them may actually possess the elements,
if nothing more, of maternal solicitude for their
offspring.

Naturalists, with one single exception, which
will be presently considered, have not discovered

270 PERCOIDES.

any degree of affection manifested by the female
fish for her young. One is warranted in suppos-
ing that the hassar, of which Dr Hancock gives a
glowing account in the 14th number of the Zoo-
logical Journal, belongs to an order vastly more
civilized than those on this side of the Atlantic. "It
is asserted by naturalists that no fishes are known
to take any care of their offspring ; both the species
of hassar, mentioned below, however, make a
regular nest, in which they lay their eggs in a flat-
tened cluster, and cover them over most carefully.
Their care does not end here. They remain by
the side of the nest till the spawn is hatched, with
as much solicitude as a hen guards her eggs ;
both the male and female hassar (a species of
Doras,) for they are monogamous, steadily watch-
ing the spawn, and courageously attacking the as-
sailant. Hence the negroes frequently take them
by putting their hands into the water close to the
nest ; on agitating which the male hassar springs
furiously at them, and is thus captured. The
round-head forms its nest of grass, the flat-head
of leaves. Both at certain seasons burrow in the
bank. They lay their eggs only in wet weather.
" I have been surprised to observe the sudden
appearance of numerous nests in a morning af-
ter rain occurs, the spot being indicated by a
bunch of froth, which appears on the surface of

MUGIL. 271

the water over the nest. Below this are the eggs,
placed on a bunch of fallen leaves or grass, if it be
the litteral species^ which they cut and collect to-
gether. By what means this is effected, seems
rather mysterious, as the species are destitute of
cutting teeth. It may possibly be by the use of
their arms, which form the first ray of the pecto-
ral fins."

GEN. SARMULLUS.

Red Mullet, — Mullus Barbatus. Red mul-
lets have appeared, within the last few years, in
the neighborhood of Boston, but not being at all
prized, a few only have been exhibited in the
market.

It has a sloping head, two cirri under the chin,
three rays in the branchial membrane, and two
dorsal fins ; the eyes of the variety of which we
are speaking, are wonderfully large, light colored
and watery, — and out of all proportion to the
body, which averages fourteen inches in length.

As the severity of winter increases, the surmul-
let seeks the shore ; it is in winter, therefore, and
only then, they are caught. It was one of the
luxuries in the most corrupt age of Rome, to have
these red fishes swimming in a vessel, under the
tables of the opulent, that guests might enjoy the
refined pleasure of seeing the color fade away, as

272 PERCOIDES.

they slowly expired, when the water was drawn
off.

A gentleman of our acquaintance, who ventur-
ed to put the prejudices against the red devil at
defiance, and have it dressed for his tables, made
a bad report of its edible qualities. He says it was
both dry and tasteless, but there must have been
some failure, first in the culinary operation, and
secondly in the dressing. The exorbitant price
the surmullet once bore, and the value still
placed upon it by modern transatlantic gourmands,
induce us to believe that its qualities in this coun-
try are poorly understood. At Savannah, New
Orleans, and the Floridas, we are informed, it
is very common, but know nothing of the estima-
tion in which it is held.

GEN. PERCA.

The snout is destitute of scales ; the two dorsal
fins very nearly of equal length ; the gill-cov-
er spinous ; pre-opercula dentated, and ventral fins
on the thorax.

Perhaps there is not another fish, with the ex-
ception of the eel, so universally spread over the
globe, as the fresh water perch. It is delicate
food, and therefore exceedingly valued. From the
largest rivers, above the influence of tides, to the
smallest rills, which trickle down the sides of the

PERCA. 273

lofty mountain, the perch is always to be found.
They swim swiftly, keeping near the surface, feed-
ing on flies and minute insects.. In the lake of Ge-
neva a female was caught, from which 992,000
ova were taken. This fact shows very clearly
that it is marvellously prolific, yet not ten in a
hundred of the ova arrive at maturity, being the
food of others. To the Greeks and Romans this
fish w:as perfectly familiar.

Common Perch, — Pcrca Flumatilis. A beau-
tiful fish, this, having an olive brown tinge, inter-
mingled with a golden hue, — together with dark
bands, transversely coursing the sides. The first
dorsal fin is somewhat larger than the second, and
marked posteriorly by a particular dark spot. All

THE COMMON PERCH.

the fins are tinged with a lively red, when first
brought out of the water ; the same color is also
observed on the under edge of the gill membrane.
18

274 PERCOIDES

Silver Perch, — Bodianus Leucos. Hav-
ing white and glittering scales, an arched back and
prominent abdomen, even tail, a wedge-shaped
head, good sized mouth, smooth tongue, lateral
line partaking of the curve of the dorsum, yellow-
ish fins, with seventeen rays in the caudal, twelve
in the dorsal, six in the ventral, and fifteen in the
pectoral. This little fish varies from three to eight
inches in length, is found in New Hampshire, Ver-
mont, Maine, and, in fact, in all the rivers, brooks
and ponds in New England and New York.

Red Perch, — Bodianus Rufus. This is a
little larger than the silver perch, and though de-
nominated red, is really nearly black, after it
has done spawning. Operculum serrated, the tail
slightly forked, and the jaws and swallow set with
fine sharp teeth. Usually, the three first rays in
the anal fin are stiff, — very common wherever
the others are found.

White Perch, — Bodianus Pallidas. With
scales appearing like spots on the sides ; fins yel-
lowish, with the exception of the dorsal, which is
brown ; the tail is not forked ; the middle portion
of the gill cover rough and thorny ; the two dor-
sal fins coalesce. Six branchial rays, fourteen pec-

p e it c a . 275

toral, six ventral, nine dorsal, twelve anal, and
twentyfive caudal.

Pond-Perch, is another common name in the
country for the same fish ; we cannot discover
any kind of difference whatever.

Yellow Perch, — Bodianus Flavescens. Un-
der favorable circumstances, for instance, in a deep,
large pond, shaded by a thrifty growth of brush-
wood on the margin, the yellow perch attains a
large size, and becomes elegant in its proportions.
In the pectoral fins are fourteen, ventral five, anal
twelve, caudal eighteen or twenty, and dorsal
fourteen rays.

As long ago as in the year 1790, Dr Mitchell,
of New York, conveyed three dozen of yellow
perch in a churn, from Rockankama pond, in Suf-
folk, to Success pond, in Queens', a distance of
forty miles, where they had never been seen, and
from that period to the present time, they have
continued to multiply and keep the water amply
stocked. In our humble view, the yellow fins of the
silver perch, entitle it to the name and rank of the
one before us, — and further, we believe they are
one and the same thing, — the trifling difference
of color depending on circumstances, repeatedly
adverted to in various other places. The love
and ambition of subdivision — the longing to be

276 PERCOIDES.

the creator of new genera and species, has introdu-
ced more confusion into works of natural history,
than can be expurgated in fifty years of common
sense to come.

The universal distribution of this family has led
to some curious hypotheses of the manner in which
the ova were dispersed. About fifty years ago, all
at once, perch were discovered in all the lakes in
Ireland, and in the Shannon.

Mr Clinton quotes the remark from Gmelin^
that ducks may swallow the eggs of fishes and
eject them again, unhurt, so that they will after-
wards come to maturity. Adanson, in Africa, ob-
served small fishes, in morasses formed by recent
rains, which were red, and lively. Whenever the
water was evaporated they died, and after a new
rain others appeared like them. Within six or
seven years, early walkers discovered on Boston
common, one morning, an immense number of live
fishes on the grass. In this case the wind had an
agency.

Dr Hosack, many years since, had an artificial
pond excavated in a botanic garden, which to
the utter surprise of everybody was speedily sup-
plied with little fish. All these instances of the
spontaneous birth offish are not so very miraculous
as would at first appear. Birds are the unques-
tionable agents in the transportation of the ova,

PERGA. 277

cither in their own bodies, or sometimes by actu-
ally carrying the body of a. dead fish, filled with
ova.

Ponds may be successfully stocked by carrying
the eggs in water. The Chinese practise this
profitably. Fish may be transported from coun-
try to country in a jar of water, if careful to
change it occasionally on the voyage. An elec-
trical eel, which we have before noticed, in this
way was brought to Boston from South Ameri-
ca, alive*

The following fish belongs to the fourth divis-
ion of the family Percoides, distinguished by irreg-
ular teeth, a branchial membrane with seven rays,
opercula dentated, or set with some sort of spines,
— and lastly, according to the system of classifica-
tion we are pursuing, should be grouped with the
Perseques.

Striped Basse, Rock-Basse, — Perca La-
brax. [Lin. Sciaena Bloch.] On the sides are
parallel lines, like narrow ribbons, eight in number,
which give it the name of striped basse ; the scales
are large, of a metallic lustre ; in the operculum
the middle plate is serrated ; the last portion of
the third plate, the gill cover, constituted of three
pieces, has two nearly concealed spines.

278 PERCOIDES.

In the branchial membrane are seven rays, pec-
toral sixteen, ventral six, dorsal eight in the first,
and fourteen in the second, anal fifteen, and in the
caudal seventeen ; some of them in each fin ac-
cording to the size it would appear of the individ-
ual, are stiff or spinous.

Three or four of the stripes reach the tail, —
the number not always being constant ; and the
remainder gradually disappear at different points
on the abdominal walls ; the eyes -are white, the
head strikes one as being long, and the under jaw,
as in the pike, juts beyond its fellow. Next to
the mackerel, this is decidedly the handsomest of
the native fishes.

Basse, says the late distinguished De Witt Clin-
ton, is a Dutch word, signifying perch. The resem-
blance between the fishes in Lake Erie, and those
in the Atlantic is so striking, that they must be re-
ferred to a common origin. It cannot be true
that our inland fresh water seas were peopled with
aquatic beings when the deluge subsided. That
some of the lakes may have received inhabitants
in that way we should not attempt to deny ; but
that there has been no other mode of stocking
them is so unphilosophical, that it would greatly
embarrass a man to maintain an argument to that
effect. In this same Lake Erie are found the
rock-basse, and the white basse, a fac-simile of the

PERCA. 279

striped basse of the ocean ; yet nothing would be
more difficult than to hold a water communication
with the sea. Even the herring, supposed to
require salt water at least some part of the year, is
a steady resident of this lake.

Our remarks on the probable manner in which
eels are distributed over the country, will also ex-
plain the mystery of these Atlantic fishes being in
fresh water, equally developed, and obviously cli-
mated, — because the species have not become
deteriorated, — birds have doubtless been the
agents in transporting the spawn.

Striped basse are a sea fish, but principally sub-
sist near the mouths of rivers, up which they
run as high as they can conveniently go. During
the approach of winter, instead of striking out into
the deep water of the open ocean, like most other
anadromous species, the basse finds a residence
in ponds, coves, rivers, and still arms of the sea,
where, undisturbed and comfortable it remains
till the following spring. The principal rivers in
the state of Maine, as the Penobscot, &c, are
the places where they are now taken in the great-
est abundance, and of the finest flavor and size. In
all the rivers too, of Massachusetts, they are also
found, at the inclement season of winter, but
the fishery is not so productive as in Maine,
whence the best in the Boston market are annual-
ly brought.

280 PERCOIDES.

It is thought that the basse remains more con^
stantly on the coast, through the year, than almost
any other fish, being taken in every month, but
most valued in the keen, severely cold weather
of winter. They weigh from three to fifty pounds.

A striped basse, weighing forty pounds, was
taken by a colored servant on the banks of Har-
laem river, a little south of the bridge. The fish
was discovered by the man from the end of tire
dock, which projected some distance into the
river. At times he would sail gently along past the
dock into quite shoal water, but how to capture
him was the question. No net, or hook and bait
was at hand, and as the golden opportunity might
not last long, our hero resolved to encounter him
single handed in his native element, and at a favor-
able moment he leaped from the dock directly upon
his back. The affrighted fish darted from under
him as though a shark was in pursuit, and as luck
would have it, took a direction for the shore, and
ran up nearly high and dry into the mud. Before
he could get fairly afloat again, and have plenty
of sea room to make his escape, the colored man
seized him by the gills, dragged him upon the
beach, and secured his prize.

Not many years ago there was a strange and
fatal epidemic raging among the basse in Boston
harbor. Great numbers floated towards the navy

PERCA. 281

yard, at Charlestown, much swollen, and speedily
putrescent after coming to the surface. Whether
some deleterious matter from the common sewers
of the city poisoned the water, or whether a con-
tagious disease was propagated from one to the
other, could not be ascertained. That a small
quantity, comparatively, of poison, may be so gen-
erally diffused, as to exert a deleterious influence
on aquatic life, has been conclusively proved in the
case of the sinking of a small cargo of lime, which
caused the death of an incredible number of fishes.
That epidemics occasionally prevail in the ocean,
appears to be admitted, proving exceedingly de-
structive to particular species.

Judge Davis intended to have presented us
some remarks on a great mortality of the fishes in
and about the old town of Plymouth, many years
since, but we have unfortunately not yet received
them. When the new volcano of Graham's Isl-
and appeared between the island of Pantellaria, and
Seiacca on the southwest part of Sicily, distant
about thirty miles from either place, in 1831, the
havoc the heated water and sulphureous vapor made
among the fishes, was indeed extraordinary. Mill-
ions of them were seen, for miles around, floating
on the tops of the restless waves, either dead, or in
the last agonies of death.

By what authority Dr Mitchell gave his own

282 PERCOIDES.

name to the striped basse, " Perca Mitchilli" we
cannot divine; he might with equal propriety
have tacked his name to the white shark, or the
bones of the mastodon, and the last would have sa-
vored less of vanity, than the affixing his cognomen
to a common table fish, known from time imme-
morial, all over Europe. These remarks are not
made in a spirit of envy, nor with a disposition
to be disrespectful towards the memory of an emi-
nently distinguished American naturalist.

We have not succeeded in procuring a single
specimen of the " Perca Mitchilli Interrupa," of
that author, nor one of the "Perca Mitchilli Alter-
nata" which are laid down in his communication to
the New York Literary and Philosophical Society.
And the black-harry, or hauna-hills, or blue-fish,
on which considerable labor has been bestowed in
the description, though successfully sought near
Sandy Hook, does not appear to have an abiding
place in Massachusetts. One old fashioned basse,
only, whose stripes are sometimes black and some-
times blue, at one time dotted, and at another pre-
senting interrupted lines, according to the season, or
its physical condition, is known to us from Cape
Cod to Maine.

" If," says Governor Clinton, " the whole world
contains one thousand species offish, as is said, it
is not unreasonable to suppose the United States

URANOSCOPUS. 283

and their dependencies contain between three and
four hundred." We fully assent to the opinion of
the probable number of species, but, so far from
consenting to the supposition that four hundred of
them live upon the Atlantic coast of the United
States and the inland waters, we confess our belief
is that the number will fall far short. Nature has
been bountiful beyond the deserts of the country,
in natural productions, but we are too apt, in the
love of home, to over estimate its comforts — not
that we would be understood, as it regards their
value to ourselves, but as they would be estimated
by the stranger.

Our coal mines are no better than those of Eng-
land, our metals are neither more abundant nor
purer ; the birds in America are not more musical
than on other continents, nor are the fishes more
various, or of a superior quality ; all our writers on
natural history have fallen into an error, we appre-
hend, in multiplying species unwarrantably, —
which will not only subject us to ridicule, but also
retard the advancement of true scientific knowl-
edge, by requiring the industry of future writers
to correct old and deep-rooted errors.

GEN. URANOSCOPUS.

Uranoscopus Scaler, — Among the singular
productions of the ocean, this fish must be regard-

284 PERCOIDES.

ed as one of peculiar ugliness. Its hea pis in
shape like a square block, being larger than all
the remainder of the body, having protuberant
eyes on the top, looking nearly upward ; the low-
er jaw juts out beyond the upper, giving the idea
of a grinning expression ; on each side, over the
shoulders, is a strong spine ; the fins are small,
compared with its other dimensions, — and the
anal is prolonged, soft and greasy to the touch.*

Though it is only about one foot long, the di-
ameter of the head, through the articulations of
the jaws, is five inches, in a living state. The
color borders on a dirty gray, and is considerably

* "Nothing is made in vain, "

In the year 1825, a vessel from Europe, bound to Quebec,
struck against some loose ice, in consequence of which she
sprung a leak, somewhere below water, which entered so
fast as almost to defy the utmost exertions of the crew to keep
the hold clear. Just as they were on the point of taking to
the boats for safety, the leak was discovered to have sudden-
ly stopped ; and getting the ascendency, by renewed efforts,
the pumps were found to suck. Every person on board was
astonished, nor could they account for the very sudden check
given to the great force with which the water had entered
but a moment before. A few days after brought them into
port, where, on examination, a large hole was found beaten
through the plank, in which was alive fish, exactly filling the
orifice, and this saved the ship. It was supposed that the fish
was sucked in by the water, rushing into the hull, and being
too large to pass through, and unable to extricate itself, there
remained till liberated by its grateful benefactors.

URANOSCOPUS. 285

loose and shrivelled. At the corners of the mouth
are threads, and small cirri or tendrils hanging
from the tip of the under lip. It is destitute of a
swimming bladder, and therefore must be confined
to the mud, where we imagine it passes the time
in snatching, the smaller fishes that happen to come
within reach of its dilatable mouth. We have
only one specimen, taken in deep water, in fishing
for cod.

Web-Fingered Gurnard, — Trigla Palmi-
pes. Dr Mitchell found also the sea-robin, (Jine-
ata,) at New York, but we have never detected
it in Massachusetts. There are fleshy filaments
attached to the skin, just under the lower fissure
of the gills, before the pectoral fins, which have
given it the name. At their extremities they are
like the fine threads of a tassel. Over the head
there is a coat of mail, quite rough. On the mid-
dle plate of the operculum, there is a sharp bony
spear, directed backward, and the posterior is
notched like two saw teeth. On the walls of the
chest are two broad shields of bone, also armed
with thorns ; and from the eyes are two others, end-
ing near the dorsal fin. A mottled olive is the pre-
vailing color, but the abdomen is delicately white ;
and interspersed here and there are spots of red.
The pectoral fins almost equal those of the flying

286 PERC01DES.

fish, being stretched on long, hard rays, projecting
beyond the inter-spinous membrane. The anal
fin is of a dusky yellow. In the branchial mem-
brane are six rays, in the pectoral fourteen, ven-
tral six, dorsal nine and fourteen, anal sixteen, and
caudal fifteen, rays. It is very ugly to the eye.

GEN. COTTUS.

This genus is characterised by a head thicker
than the body, beset with occasional spines, gen-
erally flattened horizontally ; the first dorsal fin
spinous, and separated from the second, which is
near the tail, and soft ; the pectoral fins are broad,
large, strong, and powerfully, and sometimes dan-
gerously exerted on the fishermen's hands. They
are found in salt and fresh water, and live consid-
erable time out of the water, in the shade. Those
from the ocean are less tenacious of life than the
others. If irritated, their heads appear to become
enormously distended with air, which is drawn in
by the gills.

River-Bullhead, — Cottus Gobio. This fish
is universally known all over New England, and
we imagine, all over the continent, existing in all
latitudes. The body is of a variable olive color,
approaching a dark yellow, and on the back near-
ly black. On each side of the head is a long

cottus. 287

sickle-shaped spine, sharp at the point, familiar to
youth, who, in the interior, have great enjoyment
in catching them.

Some of them exceed a foot in length, but the
average in New England, is not far from seven
inches. One would hardly, at first, discover the
difference between the pout, before mentioned,
and the bullhead, though they are totally unlike.

Sea-Bull, — Cottus Quadricornus. This fish
resembles the sculpin, but has the addition of four
short spines, rooted in the cheeks, below the eyes,
lying nearly flat to the face, and pointed backward.
Both pectoral and dorsal fins are broad and large,
and tinged with red. It is found along the whole
coast, — also in the Baltic and Mediterranean. It
is also taken in the Duno in Livonia, and the Dal-
erou, in Sweden. With us, the usual length is
eight and ten inches. The ground-work of the
color is yellow, patched over with red and dark
brown spots, and it is called, familiarly in this part
of the country, the four- horned sculpin.

Sculpin, — Cottus Scorpius. In England this
is the father-lasher, figured exceedingly well in the
old works on icthyology. Sculpin is a familiar
name for the family, derived, most likely, from
scorpcena, or scorpius. The head is large, and

288 PERCOIDEE.

so are the fins ; stiff rayed, and the body marbled
over with yellow and smoky patches, which, in
reality, are beautiful. There are two spines on the
gill cover, and two short ones, also, near the eyes.
It never, appeals very active, but lies on the shoal
bottom, and as the. tide ebbs and flows, seems to
take advantage of it.

THE SCULP1N.

The fins, when in that quiet state, are fully
spread, and should a baited hook be passed within
a few feet they leisurely swallow it down. They
are the pest of saltwater fishermen. As food they
are not esteemed. They abound in Europe, New-
foundland and Greenland ; they are able to main-
tain a long combat with a small shark by bristling
up their spines.

Armed Bullhead, — Coitus Cataphactus. Nei-
ther does this differ so much from the others as
not to be instantly recognised as a sculpin. If the

BATRACHUS. 289

head is wanting in some of the spines and warty
excrescences, so forbidding in them, it has a com-
pensation in the development of horny bumps, like
the crusts on a rhinoceros, and a dingy yellow skin,
marbled much like the preceding.

On inquiring of the aged fishermen to whom we
showed the specimens, they were particularly fa-
miliar with them under the names of ruper sculpin,
horn sculpin, and toad sculpin.

GEN. BATRACHUS.

Grunting Bullhead, — Batrachus Grunni-
ens. Its name originated from the circumstance
of its making a grunting noise as it comes out of the
water, which is effected by the prodigious inflation
of the gills and side muscles of the mouth, similar
in office to the buccinators. The mouth is small,
writh minute, almost concealed teeth ; but in the
fauces are large molar blocks, constituting a crush-
ing mill, of a powerful order. A whitish color
predominates, shaded by dark bands.

In the branchial membrane are seven rays ; sev-
enteen in the pectoral fin, six in the ventral, seven
in the anal, nineteen to twentyfive in the caudal,
and ten in the first, and twentyfour, ordinarily, in
the second dorsal ; under the tip of the lower lip
are cirri. About the length of the sculpin.

19

290 PERCOIDES.

GEN. LOPHIUS.

Frog-Fish, Mouse-Fish, Angler, Bel-
lows-Head, and Sea-Devil, — Lophius Pis-
catorius. We were fortunate in procuring a
specimen of this monster, but it was subsequent-
ly destroyed by vermin, in the process of dry-
ing It was taken near Cohasset rocks, on the
tautog fishing ground, by a pleasure party from
Boston. The head was enormously large, but
the body slender and tapering, and four feet
long. When the jaws were open it could re-
ceive a morsel as large as a man's head.

THE FROG FISH.

Separately from the fins, it resembled a colos-
sal tad-pole or pollywog. The skin was rough-
ened by warty excrescences of a clayish blue
color, and snug over the body, but loose over the
head ; the eyes were large and dull. Many
threads were projecting from the sides and angles
of the mouth, short and flexible, and at their ex-

LOPHIUS. 291

tremities bulbous. There were two long rays be-
hind the upper lip. In fact, the dorsal fin com-
menced by another ray, somewhat solitary, seve-
ral inches from the last, towards the tail. Only a
few rays were given for the support of the two dor-
sal fins, which appeared to have been torn ; indeed ,
it would not be difficult to make three distinct dor-
sals. The pectoral had twenty five deeply lodged
rays, enveloped in a fleshy, reddish mass, like the
meshes in the palm of a child's hand ; in the
branchial were five on each side, at considerable
distance, allowing the gill to be spread out like a
dust-pan ; the caudal had eight ; the anal ten, and
under the belly were loose, fleshy appendages, of
a roseate color, covered by an elastic, gelatinous
tissue, which are called flippers. Both lips, as
well as the jaws, were stocked with sharp, conical
teeth, of unequal length, and in the swallow were
patches of another kind, but apparently thrown
about without much regard to order.

Where the body joined the head, although that
measured over four feet in circumference, it did
not much exceed the diameter of a man's arm.

Old writers, to whom the fishing frog was known,
assured their readers that the cirri were fishing
lines, and the bulbous extremities were the baits,
which nature had provided for its use in angling.
BufFon, who relates some strange facts of this fish,

292 PERCOIDES.

says it lies concealed in the weeds, allowing
the lines to float above its head, which so much
resemble a favorite species of marine worms, that
the fishes being deceived by them, are successful-
ly decoyed into the capacious vortex which is
open to receive them.

That the sturgeon practises a similar method
seems generally admitted by naturalists. Pliny
goes still farther by allowing the little fishes to
" swallow the bait" when the concealed dragon
draws them in by shortening the line. Dog-fish
are mentioned by some writer, as their favorite
food, which, by the way, we are right glad to
hear, as they are the robbers and murderers that
keep many species from visiting our shores. When
the intestines are taken out and the shell of the
head dried, it becomes diaphanous, in which con-
dition boys put a candle inside, and make use of
it as a scarecrow lantern.

Perhaps in fishing six months another might
not be caught, so that they may be considered as
prone to concealment. From the nature of the
organization of the viscera, it is certain they are
destructively voracious ; confined to deep, dark,
muddy bottoms, and never disposed to wander far
from localities which yield a tolerable subsistence.

SCOMBER. 293

FAMILY V. SCOMBEROIDES.

The scales in this family are almost impercep-
tible, on account of their smallness. Usually, the
adipose portion of the dorsal and anal fins are
thickened by the scales, anteriorly ; the mem-
brane of the rays behind is slender, and sometimes
wanting in some genera. Cuvier divided the fam-
ily into four tribes, characterised by the structure,
rather than the position of the dorsal fins.

Chub-Mackerel, — Scomber Grex. This is
the same fish called thimble-eyed and bull-eyed
mackerel, to the south of Cape Cod; to the
north of that point of land, for some reason which
we cannot explain, it rarely makes its appearance,
though abounding at New York. By a round,
gently tapering body, waving lateral line, a dark
green color on the dorsal surface, and a va-
riegated, changeable color on the sides, when first
caught, like feathers on a pigeon's breast, it may
always be known.

In the Literary Transactions before referred to,
we find that in the years 1781 and J 813, all the
bays, rivers, creeks and coves were crowded with
this species, which has, since those memorable
periods, been comparatively scarce.

In the branchial membrane are five, pectoral

294 SCOMBEROIDES.

nineteen, dorsal nine and twelve, anal thirteen, and
caudal twentythree rays, though not invariably.
Probably age adds to the strength, and in fact
completes the growth of some of the soft rays.

Spring Mackerel, — Scomber Vernalis. We
have long been in doubt about the existence of
this fish, but on the whole, conclude that it really
differs from the common mackerel. In the first
place, it is truly beautiful, being elegantly propor-
tioned, from ten to sixteen inches in length, and
two and a half, or thereabouts, through the shoul-
ders ; waving stripes of a rich blue, emerge from
the dark color of the back and wind under the
abdomen, where they are lost ; the interstices be-
tween the bands are of a changeable red, mixed
with green ; the caudal fin is forked, and spreads
either way to the extent of more than three inch-
es, supported on the outer edges by spines.

On the ventral fins, early in the spring, are cloud-
ed blackish spots ; the eyes have a night or nicti-
tating curtain, moved over the cornea it would
seem, as in birds. We are not, however, precise-
ly certain that this is the fact. Only a very few
of these visit the shore further north than Salem
and its neighborhood. There are six rays in the
branchial, seventeen in the pectoral, five in the
ventral, ten or twelve in the dorsal, twelve in the

SCOMBER. 295

anal, and from eighteen to twenty four in the cau-
dal.

Yellow Mackerel, — Scomber Cry sos. Only
six inches in length, and two deep at the thick-
est part ; said to be on the coast, though we have
not procured a specimen, but taken in the bay
of New York, and at Newport, &c. Rhode
Island.

Horse-Mackerel, — Scomber Plumbeus. On
the authority of the late Dr Mitchill, we no-
tice the existence of this little fish, thirteen
inches long, with a name that is associated with
the idea of something large enough to swallow a
horse. Not a single specimen could be procured
last season, in the vicinity of Boston.

Spanish Mackerel, — Scomber Maculatus,
so called by writers, and the banded-mackerel,
scomber zonatus, are minutely described by Dr
Mitchill, but after a tedious and satisfactory ex-
amination, we are fully persuaded that the doctor
was deceived by the soft rays and the accidental
difference of color, at different seasons of the year,
and that there are not so many varieties of the
mackerel as he imagined. If at any subsequent
period we change this opinion, in a future edition
we shall certainly be honest in confessing it.

296 SCOMBEROIDES.

Mackerel, — Scomber Scomber. This com-
mon fish has a head compressed and smooth ; the
body is also smooth ; the lateral line carinate ; has
several spurious fins, oftentimes observed between
the dorsal fin and caudal. Twenty two species are
thought to be known to icthyologists, distinguished
by having or not having spurious fins ; those
which have the spurious, are divided into those
having them distinct and those having them con-
nected together.

Three species are found near Massachusetts by
the fishermen. Occasional stragglers are proba-
bly taken, but are not recognised as such.

The common mackerel of commerce is certain-
ly one of the most beautiful fish in our waters, so
familiar, that it is almost needless to describe its
figure. It has, till very recently, been supposed
that the mackerel was a migratory fish, retiring,
towards winter, to the polar regions, where it pro-
tected itself from the intense cold, by keeping under
the vast mountains of ice. Lately, it has been as-
serted, but on rather doubtful authority, that this
fish remains on the coast through the year, imbed-
ded during the severity of the winter, in the soft
mud but a few leagues from the coast.

The following subjoined letter to the author,
from Capt. Couthouy, a highly intelligent navi-
gator of Boston, not only on the subject of their

SCOMBER. 297

migration, but on other controverted points among
naturalists, will in some measure settle the point
in question.

At Sea— passage from Cadiz to Boston, Jan. 1S32.
Dr Smith —

Dear Sir, — Believing that any information, however hum-
ble or limited, respecting the habits and peculiarities of fish-
es, will, in consequence of your present occupation, possess
some interest for you, and also mindful of the request you
made last summer, I take the liberty of sending the few obser-
vations I have been able to make this voyage. I regret that
owing to the hurry of preparing for sea, I omitted informing
you according to promise of the time of my sailing, in order
to be furnished with large bottles, &c. for the preservation of
specimens — since, though I have taken a great number of
fishes, the greater part have unluckily been lost for want of
means of preservation.

I have, however, saved the following, — two species of remo-
rse ; one of the pipe or file fish ; a fine specimen of the mo-
noceros, one of the largest I ever saw; and a very singular
worm. Of the remorse, the common or black one was taken
from a large shark we caught, to which it adhered for
some time after he was on deck. The striped one was attach-
ed to the monoceros, and is, I think, the male, as the black
one is the female, of the species ; the stripes, which the liquor
has turned nearly white, were then of a brilliant yellow, the
body of an uniform dark ash color. At the same time there
was one adhering to the heel of the rudder, of similar appear-
ance, but near five feet in length ; he remained there several
days, although the vessel was sailing at the rate of six to sev-
en miles the whole time ; but all attempts to capture him
proved fruitless.

The pipe fish appears to be a variety of the species brought
you last summer, the most remarkable circumstance relating

298 SCOMBEROIDES.

to it, is its having been taken in a small pond of fresh water,
fifty miles from sea, and where no salt water ever came. I
imagine it was transported thither by some sea-fowl, which
swallowed it while in the ovum, and subsequently deposited
it in this pond. The monoceros was taken with a bucket, at
a time when a number of large sharks were around us ; it is
a very stupid fish, suffering itself to be knocked several times
with the bucket, without attempting to remove ; the sharks
also frequently rubbed against it, but it paid no attention to
them.

The worm is the first of the kind, I have ever met with ;
it was found in a living state, in the maw of a flying fish
which came on board, but whether it was taken for food, or
preyed upon the fish itself, I could not determine. At the
time the monoceros was taken, as above mentioned, there were
great numbers of dolphin swimming among the sharks with
perfect familiarity ; and although the latter were so ravenous
that we took five of them from seven to twelve feet long,
they did not manifest the slightest disposition to molest the dol-
phins; a circumstance which confirms me in the belief I had
long entertained, that the stories of sharks catching dolphins
were merely fabulous.

The shark holds about the same position among fishes, as
the vulture among birds — excessively greedy, but seldom at-
tacking any thing but carrion. Another reason for this belief
is the difficulty of a shark's seizing any object above him, in
consequence of the upper jaw projecting so far beyond the
lower ; a conformation which obliges him to turn over, in or-
der to secure his prey. Any fish, during this act, could make
its escape with ease. Man does so with less readiness, be-
cause, being out of his clement, he cannot manage himself with
so much facility. I would here mention that one of the sharks
was entirely different from any which have before come under
my observation, and might be called a most beautiful fish, pos-
sessing none of that clumsiness of shape or motion, which is
characteristic of the species ; but by no means inferior in vo-

SCOMBER.

299

racity, of which he gave us ample proof. He was nineteen
feet or more, in length, our stern being eighteen feet across,
and his head and tail projecting considerably on either side.
His color on the back, was a brilliant purple, which became
gradually fainter towards the belly, where it was a pure white ;
the pectoral and dorsal fins were much smaller than in the
other species, and the tail not so perpendicular, it being in most
of them, thus —

while this was more horizontal, and tapered more gradually
in this form —

the head also, instead of being flat and semicircular, like the
rest, was long and pointed in somewhat this manner —

the eyes were of a bright green hue. He stole about thirty
pounds of meat from the lines, while we were trying to noose
him, in which, however, we finally succeeded, and I had al-
ready in imagination, placed his head in a barrel of pickle, in
order tbat it might, at some future moment be submitted to
the philosophic investigation of Dr J. V. C. S., when owing
to the peculiar formation of his opposite extremity, the noose
slipped over it, and for aught I can tell, he may yet be hur-
rying off as fast as his fins will permit him.

300 SCOMBEROIDES.

If your patience is not too far tested atready by this long
fish story, there is another circumstance which may be inter-
esting to you. I am not sufficiently versed in icthyology to
be positive, but believe it to be generally understood, that the
mackerel which disappear from our coasts in the fall, run to
the northward, and remain during the winter under the ice.
I have not the presumption to assert that this is not the case,
but leave you to judge how far the following facts may go to
disprove such a position. On the 10th Nov. 1831, we were
sailing at the rate of five knots per hour to the northeastward,
when we were passed by an immense shoal of mackerel,
swimming in a southeast direction. They first came in sight
about 10, A. M. and continued passing till after 11, They
would not take the hook. There were hundreds of dolphin
in pursuit, by whom they were sometimes driven almost on
board.

This was in lat. 44° north, long 39° 30' west. Supposing
its progress to have been at the rate of six miles per hour,
which it must have been at least, the shoal was about seven
miles in extent from northwest to southeast — their breadth
was far as the eye could discern on both sides.* On coupling

* The following extract is a corroboration of Capt. Couthouy's
remark, that they go in immense shoals.

" This fish," says the Newburyport Herald, of 1831, c« was
never more abundant in our bay than on Sunday, Monday,
and Tuesday of this week. A solid shoal of miles in extent,
lay outside of our harbor, within twelve miles, and gave in-
cessant occupation and fine sport to a large fleet of mackerel-
men. The number of craft engaged was supposed to be
about three hundred. We have already stated that one ves-
sel took, in a single day, seventy barrels. On Wednesday,
the shoal had disappeared."

" A mackerel, three feet ten inches long, and measuring
eighteen and a half inches round the body, was caught in Sev-
ern River, near Round bay, on Saturday last, and was ser-

SCOMBER. 301

this with the facts, that in the early part of May, 1829, in
about 19° north lat. and 48° west long., I passed a large shoal
swimming to the northwest, and their making their first ap-
pearance on our coast to the southward, I am inclined to be-
lieve that in lieu of going to the northward on the approach of
winter, as generally imagined, they on the contrary quit our
seas for those of a more temperate clime.

Again, is not their extreme leanness when first appearing
with us, a natural consequence of their long and fatiguing
passage ? I am wholly ignorant whether they have been
seen in more southern climates, except in the instance I have
mentioned, but if they have not, I think it may be reasonably
supposed that they swim deep to avoid the havoc which would
otherwise be committed in their ranks by the fishes of prey,
which in those seas abound near the surface.

How far the facts stated justify such an inference, you are
the best judge; they are certainly singular and novel ; — it
is to be lamented that in general, those who have the most
frequent opportunities of investigation, are apt to regard such
occurrences as hardly worthy of notice ; as a habit of ob5erva-
tion and remark, would no doubt be the means of elucidating
many doubtful or disputed points.

And now, requesting your indulgence for this long and I
fear tedious letter, my only excuse for which, is the motive
with which it was written.

I remain, very respectfully, yourobt. servant.

Jos. P. Couthouy.
I will just add, though you are already, perhaps, aware of
it, that the male dolphin may be easily distinguished from the

ved up at Wilson and Swan's Hotel, on Sunday. A delicious
dish it was."

We are told, but on what authority we are totally unable to
divine, that the mackerel has a strong predilection for hu-
man flesh. In the Mediterranean, the famous article called
caviare is manufactured from the roes.

302 SCOMBER OIDES.

female, in the water, by the shape of its head ; that of the
former being abrupt, and almost perpendicular, thus —

while the female's is more roucded, thus.

Yours, &c. J. P. C.

Certain it is that in the spring they make their
appearance in vast shoals, scarcely inferior, as it
regards numbers, to the herring — being many
miles in extent. From some cause not yet under-
stood, the common mackerel appears to be consti-
tutionally subject to a disease of the tunica con-
junctiva, the skin covering the eyes.* This mem-
brane seems to thicken, during the winter, to such
a degree, as apparently to obstruct the entrance
of the rays of light to the retina ; but as warm

* Effects of lime upon fish. — As a barge laden with lime
was proceeding up the Ouse from Lewes, from some cause
or other, it sunk near Barcombe. The effect on the fish in
the river was instantly manifested ; hundreds rose to the sur-
face, and a great number were taken by hand. Pikes were
seen darting about in great agony; and most of the finny
tribe within a mile of the spot where the accident occurred,
were rendered blind from the burning nature of the lime. It
is calculated that some thousands of fish perished.

SCOMBER. 303

weather approaches it sloughs off. The color
of the mackerel is altogether beautiful, and it may,
in this respect be considered the Adonis of the
sea.

Commonly, in length, it is about ten, and from
that to fourteen inches. It has dark blue, trans-
verse stripes, from the dorsal fin, elegantly shaded
with a rich tinge of green. On the male, the
stripes are nearly straight, but on the female wa-
vering. Numerous black spots are noticed on the
sides, fading into a splendid golden green, that
cannot well be imitated by artists.

THE MACKEREL.

In the catalogue of edible fishes, this has main-
tained a high rank from remote antiquity. The
ancients manufactured from the mackerel a sauce,
in universal estimation, called garum, which was
little else than the pickle, in which they were pre-
served. The same article still holds an elevated
rank at the fashionable tables of Constantinople.

Surely, the mackerel fishery of Massachusetts,
now exceedingly extensive, must be reckoned one
of the most important branches of business, giving

304

SCOMBEROIDES.

employment to thousands, who could not contribute
to the general prosperity of the state in any oth-
er way.*

The thousands of barrels annually exported to
the West Indies, give peculiar activity to our
commerce.

The Surmullet, — Mullus Surmuletus, a
variety of the mackerel, was held in the high-
est possible estimation by the Romans, those
princes of good living. Pliny says that a Ro-
man Consul paid for only one of them, a sum
equal to $216,68, and Suetonius furthermore re-

* The following is the numher of barrels of
ed in this state during the last tvventysix
halves are reduced to whole barrels

1804

8,0794

1805

8,9364

1806

8,473

1807

10,9044

1808

7,7384

1809

8,8654

1810

13,0584

1811

19,632

1812

5.018£

1813

3,S32£

1814

1,349

1815 I2ts.l6,3494

1816

30,021

1817

37,982

barrels

of mackerel pack-

twenty

six years. The

1818

47,210

1819

105,433

1820

236,243

1821*

111,009^

1822

160,2944

1823

145,006

1824

191,6504

1825

254,3814

1826

158,7404

1827

190,3104

1828

237,3244

1829

225,882

1830

308,462

* The first year after the division of the States from Maine.

SCOMBER. 305

lates that one of the Emperors, at an aera of osten-
tatious luxury, gave for three surmullets, 30,000
sesterces, which is $1065,60 cents.

The markets in Constantinople are liberally
supplied with this fish, under the royal appella-
tion of sultan halik. A variety of the surmullet,
is found to the south of New York, and sometimes
there, which is familiarly known to fishermen as
the short mackerel. These are often poisonous,
which results, most likely, from the substance on
which they have been feeding.. The follow-
ing notice in a New York paper, of the last sea-
son, is confirmatory of this assertion.

" Families are cautioned against eating a spe-
cies of small mackerel which are now selling in our
markets. Seven of the writer's family, yesterday
morning, were affected in a way which leaves no
doubt as to the fact of their having been poisoned.
Each individual was variously affected, according
to the quantity eaten. The face and whole body
became flushed, and in a short time the complex-
ion resembled the color of mahogany. The head
was also affected, and sickness at the stomach and
vomiting succeeded in two or three instances ; in
others medicine was administered. The pupils of
the eye dilated, and then swam as it were in liquid ;
the body also became swollen. No serious con-
sequences ensued, though an individual is still con-
20

306 COMBEROIDES.

fined to her bed. As the writer has since heard
of another instance of similar effects being produ-
ced from eating this fish, there is no doubt as to
the cause which produced it. The effects were
visible a few minutes after the fish was eaten."

The mackerel, with all its beauty, is decidedly
stupid, in many respects. A red rag, or a bit of
paper tied to the hook and rapidly trailed from a
boat, affords delightful sport. We actually won-
der that the worshippers at the shrine of honest
Izaak Walton, who cannot angle for trout in the
ocean, do not turn their attention to mackerel
chases in our beautiful harbors.

GEN. THYNNUS.

Tunny, — Scomber Thynnus. Occasionally
the tunny is taken in baiting other more common
fish. They do not run in shoals, on this coast.
Sometimes they have been seen ten feet in length,
but on this shore they oftener fall short of two
feet, than exceed it. They may be known by a
hissing, or cutting of the dorsal fin through the
water, while running with great swiftness. They
sometimes pursue the mackerel, which they de-
vour voraciously.

Tn this place they are not frequently eaten,
being so scarce that their quality, as food, is
not commonly known. Pliny, the naturalist,

CENTRONOTUS. 307

gives an account of a shoal of tunnies, so vast that
the fleet of Alexander the Great, could scarcely
maintain its course. The ships were arranged in
battle array, to force the extraordinary aquatic pha-
lanxes to give way to the conqueror of the world.
The tunny will be recognised by its dark blue
back ; silvery sides, and the gray color of the first
dorsal fin, and the darker gray of the tail. Its
spinous fins have a yellowish tinge.

GEN. CENTRONOTUS.

Pilot Fish, — Centronotus Ductor. To mar-
iners, this frequent attendant on vessels is well
known, and is the theme of many fore-castle tales.
It has a light blue colored body, with wide trans-
verse bands of a deeper and beautiful shade, four
dorsal spines, a forked tail, and varies in length
from six to eighteen inches.

In a recent publication on natural history, it is
positively asserted that two of these fishes, some
years ago, accompanied a ship from the Mediter-
ranean into Falmouth, where they were taken in
a nest. This was an unfeeling and ungenerous
act, after they had travelled such a distance.

Sailors are very confident that the pilot fish
swims before sharks, to conduct them where to
commence a slaughter, but this is altogether gra-
tuitous ; but that they are much in their bad com-

308 SCOMBEROIDES.

pany, is very true, but then it may be with the
expectation of nibbling at the remnants of the
feast.

With the most determined perseverance, they
will keep within a few feet of the hull of a ship,
night and day, for weeks together, as though they
were actually on business. Whether this arises
from a feeling of safety, while in company with a
vessel, a love of wandering, or a hope of plunder,
cannot be determined.

GEN. ZEUS.

Common Dory, — Zeus Faber, Three spe-
cies, the hair-finned, rostrated, and bristly, zeus
capillaris, rostratus et setapinnis, are known in
the waters about Long Island Sound, New York,
but the common dory is the only one of the fami-
ly which has been detected in Boston Bay, so far
as known to us. It is a thin, broad fish, fashion-
ed somewhat like the fresh water bream, with
sloping head, and a body of a yellowish color,
having a black patch each side, large as the thumb
nail. From the middle of the back over the
shoulders, long, slender, thread-like spines, three
or four inches long, are given off, which, when the
fish swims fast, are laid nearly flat. Farther back
little spikes of bone are presented above the skin,
and at the commencement of the dorsal spine are

CHRYSOTOSUS. 309

forked spines, — the first being long and semi-
flexible ; the anal fin is similar, the tail forked,
like the mackerel.

There are other marks, such as two long, slen-
der, brush-like fins, under the throat, and pouting
lips, the under being a trifle the longest. The
black spots are said to have been given it by St
Peter, as in the haddock, by the pressure of the
thumb and finger. Another vulgar notion is this,
that St Christopher, in wading through an arm of
the sea, having caught a stray dory, left on it the
marks of the grip which he gave. Quin, the cele-
brated English comedian, is said to have brought it
into repute as a luxury, in his day, though it is
now neglected. Its usual length is not far from
ten inches.

GEN. CHRYSOTOSUS.

Moon-Fish, — Chrysotosus Luna. Within the
last few years, some of these splendid fishes have
been brought into port by homeward-bound ves-
sels. During long and tedious calms, within a
day's sail of Boston, Newburyport, Salem, &c.
the moon-fish has been taken with a hook, —
sometimes measuring six feet in length. The
body and tail are flat, oval, without perceptible
scales, short snout, and destitute of teeth.

There are six rays in the gill membrane, the

310 SCOMBEROIDES.

first portion of the dorsal fin is pointed and high,
but the middle part of it short. A silvery green
is the prevailing color, but in a certain position,
golden, with azure tinges, are seen, and then, as
though there was a particular design in beautifying
it, though only occasionally seen by man, well
defined white oval spots are dotted along the
sides.

Much as has been said of the splendor of the
mackerel, the moon-fish is really, to our appre-
hension, the Adonis of the sea. We have not
seen a single specimen in spirit, in any cabinet in
this country, those brought on shore being usually
first placed in pickle, and afterwards dried, which
ruins the color.

GEN. XIPH1AS.

Sword-Fish, — Xiphias Gladius. Two species
of the sword-fish have been discovered, but only
one of them is known to exist here, which, by way
of eminence, is called the great sword-fish. The
snout is long and flattened, resembling a dirk;
the first dorsal fin, commencing just back of the
shoulders, is high, and particularly elevated ante-
riorly, but gradually slopes off towards the tail,
where it presents merely a sharp ridge above the
back, and then suddenly rises into a point again ;
some of the first rays are spinous. The anal fin

XIPHIA6, 311

is short and pointed ; the tail lunated, the color of
the body a sort of brown, running into a bluish
shade, but on the abdomen, the skin is white. As

THE SWORD FISH.

before remarked of some preceding fish, this is ev-
idently possessed of a highly irritable disposition,
and therefore appears to be constantly involved in
perilous and fearful difficulties ; it is voracious,
and yet without teeth ; and though it seems to
be the knight errant of the deep, by meddling
with the affairs of others, in which it has no
personal interest, it also appears, at other times,
to be at open war with whatever moves in the
same liquid element.

Whales of prodigious magnitude, though truly
peaceably disposed, if by chance they get within
the sphere of its vision, are butchered without
mercy ; whenever the sword-fish fails of accom-
plishing the death of this great animal, it is often-
er because the sword is not long enough to pene-

312 SCOMBEROIDES.

trate through the thick sheet of blubber to the vi-
tals, than from any want of exertion on the part
of the warlike assailant.

Mariners assure us, that on making our coast,
it is no uncommon circumstance to see this fish,
six, ten, and fifteen feet long, playing about the
vessel. We have been inclined, at times, to sup-
pose that the mcikaira, or lesser sword-fish, also
inhabited these waters, but no specimens having
been procured to establish the fact, we have con-
cluded that the young of the gladius are the little
ones adverted to by seamen.

We have had an opportunity of conversing on
the subject with several intelligent vineyard pilots,
particularly Mr Dagget, an aged man, who has
pursued his adventurous business nearly half a cen-
tury, to whom we are indebted for all the accurate
knowledge we possess of their history in Mas-
sachusetts.

Instead of being rare, they are certainly nu-
merous, and some of them of tremendous power.
They are sometimes sought, successfully too, for
their flesh, which is considered a wholesome, nu-
tritious food, much superior to common fish. Mr
Dagget remarked that he salted it down in barrels
for retailing.*

* Let a man do what he will, if he is honest and industri-
ous, the labor of his hands is not only profitable to himself,

X1PH1AS. 313

Very recently this same gentleman procured a
magnificent one, the head of which, with its sword,
upwards of four feet long, was neatly prepared
by Dr Yale, of Holmes's Hole, by whom it was
forwarded to Boston. There are times when they
appear unusually numerous ; and then again, sev-
eral weeks perhaps will pass by before they are
seen again.

On a calm sunny day, during the last summer,
as a pilot was leisurely rowing his little skiff
over the glassy bosom of the gently swelling waves,
he was suddenly roused from his seat by the
plunge of a sword fish, thrusting his long spear
more than three feet up through the bottom of
the slender bark ; when the pilot, with that pres-
ence of mind for which the whole fraternity are
distinguished, broke it off on a level with the floor,
by the butt of an oar, before the submarine assas-
sin had time to withdraw his fearfully offensive
weapon.

but of real utility to others. The truth of the observation is
finely illustrated in the following extract.

" In the garden grounds along the river Sitter, in the Can-
ton of Appenzell, Switzerland, such numbers of snails are kept
for fattening, that the noise of their dentriulated jaws, are heard
several paces. Sometime before Lent, they are packed in
casks, and sent to the convents of Suabia, Bavaria, Austria,
even as far as Vienna, where they are sold as luxuries. By
this traffic, some have acquired handsome fortunes."

314 SC0MBER01DES.

Within five or six years, a Boston ship, on a
return from a long voyage, being overhauled for
repairs, presented the stump of a sword-fish's
blade, the point of which was driven a considerable
way into the hard oak. In repairing his Britannic
Majesty's ship Leopard, in 1725, on her return
from the coast of Guinea, a sword of this fish was
found to have gone through the sheathing one inch,
next through a three inch plank, and beyond that
four inches and a half into the firm timber. It was
the opinion of mechanics, that it would require
nine strokes of a hammer, weighing twentyfive
pounds, to drive an iron bolt of similar size and
form, to the same depth in the same hull ; yet
this was accomplished by a single thrust.

The Hon. Josiah Robbins of Plymouth, rela-
ted to us the following extraordinary fact. On the
return of the ship Fortune, of Plymouth, from a
whaling voyage, in the Pacific, some time in the
year 18*26, or 7, he does not recollect which ;
the stump of a sword-fish's blade was discovered
on the outside of the hull, which, on examin-
ation, was found to have penetrated through the
copper sheathing, an inch board sheathing, a three
inch hard wood plank, the solid white oak timber
of the ship, twelve inches thick, through anoth-
er two and a half inch hard oak ceiling-plank, and
lastly perforated the head of an oil cask, where

XIPH1AS. 315

it still remained immovably fixed, so that not a
single drop of oil had escaped.

We are enabled by these relations, to form some
tolerable idea of their amazing muscular power.
The late Sir Joseph Banks was informed by an
East India Captain of a fact equally interesting ;
the sword was driven its entire length into the
solid wood of the ship, but the extreme violence
of the shock instantly killed the enraged fish. The
block, sawed out of the hull, containing the imbed-
ded instrument, is still exhibited in the British
museum.

On the coast of Brazil, the sword-fish attains
its greatest dimensions, being found twentyfive
feet long. Ship-carpenters do not view the cir-
cumstance of finding points and portions of blades
in vessels a rare occurrence, and more particularly
in those from South America.

We have many specimens of the swords, from
various parts of the world, but two only possess
the skeleton of the head, which renders them
quite valuable to a cabinet. Seamen, who bring
them from foreign parts as curiosities, are very apt
to ruin them in two ways, viz : first, by sawing
them off too far from the jaw ; and secondly, by
scraping the blades smooth with knives and glass,
by way of improving upon nature ; hence a ma-
jority of the specimens in museums are nearly ru-
ined.

316 SaUAMIPENNES.

The blade, as it comes from the fish, is between
three and four inches wide, at the base, depending
on the proportions of the individual to which it
belonged, tapering to a sharp point ; the edges
are rough, like a coarse file, not cutting, but cal-
culated rather for tearing; the upper surface
is ash-colored, convex, and covered by an epi-
dermis, or scarf skin, also rough to the touch,
like sand paper. The under side is lighter color-
ed, freer from roughness, and less convex. A
smaller fish is found in the southern states, whose
under jaw is terminated in a sword, in character
and use precisely like this ; how either of them
feed is a question which remains to be answered.

FAMILY VI. SQJJAMIPENNES.

Members of this family are known by the scales
mounting the soft portion of the fins, and by the
peculiarity of the teeth, which are very much like
short bristles, irregularly crowded together.

GEN. SESERINUS.

Seserinus Alepidotus. Though quite rare,
whenever taken, it will be recognised by the blue

FISTULAR1A. 317

color of its body, forked tail, and oval form. The
body is wide and thin, the little teeth, hardly per-
ceptible, are sharp, in one row ; the scales are
also so small that a glass is required to observe
them distinctly ; the first spines of the anal and
dorsal fins are hooked forward towards the head ;
and instead of ventral fins, there are two slender
bones ; and beside, two lateral lines on each side.

FAMILY VII. FISTULARIDJE.

The characteristic of this family, is a long, semi-
transparent tube, formed by the extended eth-
moid bones, bones of the partition of the nose, and
others of the head, covered with a prolongation of
the skin ; and at the extremity is the mouth. The
body is long, slender, and delicately formed.

GEN. FISTULARIA.

Tobacco-pipe Fish, — Fistularia Tabacaria.
Had we not two excellent specimens of this fish,
taken near Holmes's Hole, its existence would not
have been credited so far to the north of the equa-
tor. Those before us, now under examination,
are upwards of eighteen inches long — and from
the caudal fin, a single hair runs off one foot fur-

318

FISTULARID^E.

ther, giving an entire length of two feet and a half.
The body is smooth, the jaws narrow, scales mi-
nute, fins tinged with red near their joinings ; one
dorsal fin opposite to the anal, and both are near
the tail, which is forked ; in the branchial mem-
brane are seven rays.

TOBACCO-PIPE FISH.

As it respects the habits of the tobacco-pipe
fish, we have no means of gaining a knowledge.
None have been seen excepting those which have
been driven on shore in storms. In South Amer-
ican seas, they are larger, and between three and
four feet in length.

END OF PART FIRST.

TROUT AND ANGLING

PART SECOND:

TROUT,

INTERSPERSED WITH REMARKS

THEORY AND PRACTICE OF ANGLING.

2L

TROUT AND ANGLING

The State of Massachusetts may be said to
abound in that highly esteemed and well known
fish, the trout, which is unrivalled, either as an
object of gratification to the palate of the epicure,
or as contributing to the innocent sport of the an-
gler. Every ingenious device which has been
practised in other countries to lure this wary, yet
bold and voracious fish, has been adopted in this,
and with equal success. In treating of them,
the subject of angling is necessarily introduced,
since all the works which have been published
in England, and all well known in this country,
upon fishing generally, give them a preeminence
over every other, as being most worthy the pur-
suit of the scientific angler.

In Great Britain, trout are divided and subdivi-
ded into many varieties, and it is not impossible
there may be as many in this country ; but as it

324 TROUT AND ANGLING.

is often difficult to settle these shades of difference,
on account of the supposition that they are capa-
ble of hybridous productions, it is sufficient to
know that there are but three principal varieties
in this state.

These are pond-trout, river or brook-trout} and
sea-trout. The two former being such fish as live
exclusively in fresh water, and the latter, such as
live, a great part of the year, in that which is salt
or brackish, ascending the streams as spring ad-
vances, and returning to their native element so
soon as the spawning season is over.

There are but few natural ponds or lakes in this
state which contain trout, for it is that which is
found in natural ponds, which we denominate pond-
trout, and not the more common fish which is
generally found in artificial mill-ponds, and which
closely resembles such as are found in the brooks
and rivers, which being flooded form the ponds.
The species referred to are found in Winnipis-
seogee Lake, in New Hampshire, whence they
are often brought to market in a frozen state, but
are in no estimation for the table, the flesh being
white and quite tasteless. They are taken only
in the winter through the ice, but seldom or never
by the usual method of angling.

These fish are doubtless natives of the lake in
which they are found, and like others of the same

TROUT AND ANGLING. 325

species, congregate in winter in its deeper waters ;
feeding upon the surface, as the weather grows
warm and the season advances, and depositing
their spawn in the still shallows of the rivers
which flow from it. Their spots are large, faint
and dark. Their shape is long like the mackerel,
but without its symmetry, and their average weight
from three to five pounds.

Though what we denominate, more strictly
speaking, pond-trout, have no red spots, there may
be some exceptions, even among such as are
found in natural ponds. But their distinction as
a species, is indicated by their never attaining the
same weight. For instance, in the town of Bel-
grade, in the state of Maine, there are two ponds
united by a river, called Long Pond and Snow's
Pond, the latter of which flows into the Kennebec,
where the trout are of a very beautiful description,
as it respects their form, bright vermilion spots,
and the pink-color of the flesh. They however do
not grow to a very large size, yet much larger
than the generality of brook and river trout.

These fish are not often caught in the ponds
above named, but as the spring advances they
are taken in the river which unites them. Warm
weather drives them back into the deep waters
of the ponds again, whence they return in
the autumn to deposite their spawn, at which

326 TROUT AND ANGLING.

time they become too easy a prey to the an-
gler.

There is another variety peculiar for its bright
red spots, in the town of Sandwich, in what is
called the Upper Pond. This is supplied by
springs, but it is difficult to say whether the fish are
indigenous to the water or not, for although the
water is cold, and therefore congenial to their hab-
its, yet they may have originally come from the
sea, and changed their nature from being confined
to the pond, by the obstructions upon the stream
which runs from it ; this may be said of many
other ponds and the effect of confinement and
change of food, is that of rendering the flesh soft
and muddy to the taste.

It has been remarked that the larger the water
the longer the fish, and also that wherever trout
are found, there are few of any other kind offish.
This arises from the fact of their requiring a cold-
er temperature than suits the nature of most other
fresh water fishes. In fact, according as the water
is cold, the flesh of the trout is firm and high fla-
vored. In Enfield Pond, in the state of New
Hampshire, there is a very large growth, which
in this and other waters of the same size, have
been known to attain the weight of ten or twelve
pounds ; here as elsewhere, they are never taken
but in the winter through the ice, a method which

TROUT AND ANGLING. 327

affords no sport to the true angler, as requiring no
skill, and is despised accordingly. Into this
pond, the pickerel, sometimes called the fresh wa-
ter shark3 has been introduced, and the result has
been that the pickerel gained the ascendency and
exterminated the trout in a very few years.

The same thing has been practised in a number
of ponds in the state of Maine, and the same re-
sult has followed. It is remarkable that on the
west side of the Penobscot river, the ponds are
mostly filled with pickerel, while on the east
side they are as generally stocked with trout ; this
must arise from some particular quality or tem-
perature of the water, nature having placed them
in that which is most congenial to their habits, and
necessary to their perpetuity.

In treating of the fish now under consideration,
it was intended to confine our remarks to such as
were found in Massachusetts alone, but as it has
been before observed, there are few ponds in this
state, or if any, not well known, which contain
the pond-trout as a distinct variety. We have
alluded to such waters in the neighboring states as
are well known to afford the subject of our illus-
tration.

They are found of immense size in the Schoo-
dic Lakes, but larger still in proportion to the ex-
tent of the waters, in the great Moose-head Lake.

328 TROUT AND ANGLING.

In both these they are only taken in the usual
way, through the ice in the winter season. Per-
haps no attempt has ever been made, but could
these " monarchs of the deep" be taken by the
regular angler, aided by all the devices so essen-
tial to the true enjoyment of his sport, the pleasure
resulting from the success of his achievement,
would be proportioned to the size and strength of
his captive.

The possibility of taking a very large fish,
(though not a trout) with the rod and line, has
been settled by the performance of Col. Thornton,
mentioned in " Daniel's Rural Sports,1' who caught
a pike in one of the Lochs in Scotland, which
weighed fortynine pounds and a quarter. He
was prepared with trolling apparatus to take this
very fish, which was known to be in the lake, hav-
ing at a previous time carried off a hook. It re-
quired one hour and a quarter to exhaust his
strength, and on being safely secured in the boat,
a scar was perceptible where the hook had escap-
ed through the skin. It is said that the trout of
the great western lakes attains the enormous size
of one hundred pounds.

The largest that we know in the state of
Maine, are found in the Moose-head Lake. To
confirm this fact, it is known that a fish was found
dead upon its shore which weighed fifty pounds,

TROUT AND ANGLING. 329

having been suffocated in an attempt to gorge
another of a large size, which protruded from its
mouth. The flesh of all these overgrown fish is
described to be coarse and unpalatable.

Of all the ponds or lakes which have been ad-
verted to as containing the primitive trout, there
is no one so well known or so much resorted to by
the ardent angler, as Sebago Pond, near Portland.
As early as March, in the spring of the year, these
fish emerge from the deep, and therefore warmer
water of the lake, and enter the Songo river, in
pursuit of their favorite bait, the smelt, — at this
time they may be taken in great numbers with the
rod and line. The attempt would be fruitless to
succeed in the pond itself, at this early season. It
is customary, therefore, by those who make this
visit so early in the year, and whose love of the
sport prevails over the necessary privations, to en-
camp upon the margin of this tributary river. The
number of such, however, is small, but as the sea-
son advances, and the fish have receded from the
river, and dispersed themselves over the whole
lake, rising and feeding upon the various insects
which float upon its surface, the angler approach-
es with a better prospect of comfort, if not success.
His equipments are a long stout salmon rod, with
rings upon it as usual to guide the line, which is
made of silk and hair, woven together, and eighty

330 TRO UT AND ANGLING.

or a hundred yards long. He has a brass reel or
winch, upon which the line is wound. The winch
is not a multiplying one, but single, and attached
to the butt of the rod, the end joint of which is
short and stout ; other spare joints are contained
in the butt of the rod. His hooks are large and
well tempered, of the size best known as mack-
erel-hooks, and they are attached to double and
twisted gut, upon which a weight, about the size
of a musket-ball, is made by loops to fasten on at
pleasure.

His pocket-book is well furnished with all the
materials necessary for the prosecution of his
sport, together with such implements as are requir-
ed to repair that derangement of his apparatus
which in fishing is always likely to occur. Only
one thing more is added to complete his gear, (for
artificial flies have seldom or never been tried,)
and that is, a net with a wide bow and a short han-
dle, or a gaff which answers the same purpose, to
land his fish, when, after being sufficiently exhaus-
ted by playing, they are ready to take in.

Thus equipped, the angler visits Sebago in the
month of June. If he is a lover of nature, there is
much to admire, not only in that densely wooded
scenery which generally surrounds our inland lakes,
and is so striking in this, but also in those little quiet
fairy islands which here and there break the glassy

TROUT AND ANGLING. 331

monotony of its surface. Notwithstanding the fact
that the artificial fly has seldom been used by the
frequenters of this lake, it does not follow that the
practice of fly-fishing would not be attended with
the same success, which attends the act as practis-
ed without exception upon the various waters in
England and Scotland. There is reason to think
so, from the well known fact that,, differing from
the trout of various other ponds, they live and feed
near the surface of the water — at least, this is
known to be their habit in the summer time, and it
may be stated still farther, in confirmation of the
probable success which wrould result from the use
of the artificial flyr that the insect, familiarly known
as the beetle or daw -bug, is often found on exam-
ination to have been their food.

Since then it is not fly-fishing, trolling may be
considered the usual method of taking the fish in
this pond. Trolling is a term which is generally
applied to fishing for pike, but it means nothing
more or less than moving about either with a dead
or live bait from place to place, and fishing upon
the surface, in distinction to fishing in deep wa-
ter, and confined to one spot. In this pond it
is customary to fish from a boat, which is slowly
moved through the water, either by the help of
oars or a sail. If the former, the fish take the bait
at a greater distance from the boat, being alarmed

332 TROUT AND ANGLING.

by the motion of the water ; in this case it is ne-
cessary to uncoil half the line, but if a sail is used,
a shorter line is sufficient.

But though the greater number of fish are
taken from a boat while moving through the
water, many are also caught at a favorite re-
sort, on a rocky shore of the pond called the
" images." This well known spot has been the
scene of many a festive meal, and often have the
caverned rocks reverberated to the sound of the
joyous angler's mirth.

Though very little can be said in favor of the
quality of the Sebago trout, as a delicacy for the
table, still ample amend is made by their unrival-
led activity on the hook, which is in the highest
degree exciting to the angler. When struck, they
instantly bound from the water to the height of
many feet, plunging and leaping alternately, in the
vain attempt to disengage the hook, but good man-
agement, and a " steady hand which feels him,
yet still to his furious course gives way," sub-
dues his strength at last, and the unwilling captive,
floating on his side, yields as a trophy to the an-
gler's skill.

It has been before observed, that their food,
more particularly in the early spring, is the fresh
water smelt ; but in summer, there are various
other small fry, such as the shiner, and minnow,

TROUT AND ANGLING. 333

which yield them sustenance. It is therefore an
object to obtain these small fish ; — if alive, so
much the better, but as it often happens from the
state of the weather, or some other cause, that
live bait is not to be procured, recourse is then
had to a small slip taken from the most shining
part of the fish itself ; this, if not so killing, is for
the reason stated, the bait which is generally used
for the Sebago trout.

It may be here remarked, once for all, that the
success of the sport, like all fresh water fishing,
very much depends upon the state of the weather,
and its influence upon the water. For though
at times there seems to be an unaccountable
caprice in their habits, yet how common it is, at
that season of the year when nature is dressed in
her gayest attire, when the air is filled with fragrance,
the field with flowers, the grove with music, and the
heart with delight — when the balmy south wind
generally undulates, without agitating the surface
of the lake or stream — and above all, when
"from the bosom of yon dropping cloud" a gentle
rain descends — how common a thing it is to hear
the ardent angler, his feelings responsive to the
charms of nature, exclaim, " What a glorious
fishing-day !"

A few years ago, on a visit to this lake in the
last week of May, the season being backward, the
water and the weather cold and unpropitious, there

334 TROUT AND ANGLING.

was no such thing as taking a fish, but having pro-
ceeded farther to the eastward, and revisiting the
lake after a lapse often days, the result was such as
might be expected from warm weather and a more
advanced season. On this occasion the average
number taken in a day, by the party of four, which
ransacked the lake in a boat, was near twenty-
five, the weight being from about two to five pounds
each.

Very erroneous opinions are formed of the
weight of these trout. They are generally exag-
gerated ; and this may be said of them wherever
they are found, but as it respects this pond, though
it is not uncommon to take them of six, and occa-
sionally of twelve pounds, yet it was the opinion
of the celebrated Mr White, which has been con-
firmed by our own observation, that considering the
prevailing number of small fish, they do not aver-
age over a pound and a half each through the sea-
son of fishing. This remark may strike some with
surprise, who have told a very different story,
founded perhaps on their individual good success.
The truth is, they have degenerated not only in
size, but numbers, owing to various causes, un-
necessary to detail.

Not less erroneous, than that which respects
their weight, is the opinion entertained by some,
that these fish were originally salmon, but being

TROUT AND ANGLING. 335

pent up and confined to the pond, by the various
obstructions in the river which forms its outlet to
the sea, they have changed their form, assumed
the spots, and become trout. If the fact were to
be settled merely by the color of the flesh alone,
there might be some ground for the notion, for it is
redder than any salmon's ever was, but with this
exception there is no other striking resemblance
between them. And as it is believed that the va-
rious shades of color peculiar to the trout, are the
result of some chemical action, arising from the
varieties of food which they eat, it may hence be
inferred, that had they ever been salmon, a change
of color would have been quite as likely to result
from their transition from salt to fresh water,
as well as a number of other transformations
which are said to have taken place. As well might
it be said that a trout on entering the sea, would
turn into a salmon.

It may be remarked in addition, that the color
of which we are speaking is not confined to the
fish of this lake only. In no other respect then
are they salmon, than as being individuals of the
genus salmo, may render them such.

Neither are they exclusively salmon trout, as all
of the species may with propriety be so denomin-
ated. Indeed it is doubtful if in this country that
particular variety is known which corresponds with

336 TROUT AND ANGLING. «

that described as the salmon trout of England; in
fact, no two authors agree upon the subject. Since
then, those of which we are speaking, possess the
obvious qualities of their species, to say nothing of
the more scientific arrangement established by nat-
uralists, by whom the trout and salmon are classed
as distinct species, — since they possess neither the
form, the fat, the flavor nor the projecting excres-
cence of the under jaw, peculiar to the male sal-
mon, since the longitudinal line as well as the spots
are more clearly defined,— we may, however our
minds have harbored a doubt that a whale is a fish,
as safely arrive at the conclusion that a trout is not
a salmon, as that Cl fleas are not lobsters."

With the exception of a few observations,
which apply to the species generally, our remarks
thus far have been mostly confined to the variety
which we denominate the pond-trout ; we proceed
now to speak of the second description, viz: — the
brook or river-trout, considering them as strictly a
fresh water fish . And in this class, we mean to
include, as before observed, such as are found in
the artificial ponds, as well as the running water
by which they are supplied, for they are precisely
the same fish, differing only in size, in which the
pond-fish have generally the advantage, since they
are less approachable, and not so effectually thinned
out as the trout of the streams. They may be

TROUT AND ANGLING. 337

considered the common trout of the country, and
abound in all parts of the state, being most plenti-
ful however, in such streams as have the fewest
obstructions. There is a great similarity in their ap-
pearance wherever they are found, and in size
much less variation than is generally supposed.

One scarcely ever hears of a brook, but at some
time or other the largest trout has been taken from
it that ever was seen. And further, — there is
scarcely a brook or river, but there is sure to be
located at a convenient distance from it, some vet-
eran angler from the old country, who enjoys the
undisturbed monopoly of its finny treasures. He
scorns the vulgar bait. He enjoys the sport, and
exults in its success, according as it requires an
exertion of his skill, for the more the art " is redu-
ced to a complete science," the greater is the
pleasure which he derives from it.

There are not only the individuals of whom we
speak, but others, who, availing themselves of all
the information to be acquired from books and
experience, are fully aware that fly-fishing is
the perfection of angling.

They import the best tackle, from England, for
it is not to be bought in all its variety in this coun-
try, including a stock of artificial flies, which are
more particularly considered standards, for it would
be useless, (our streams being, a part of the year,

338 TROUT AND ANGLING.

" in icy fetters bound,") to include such as are de-
signed, in England and Scotland for each particu-
lar month.

A pocket-book, not only well supplied with ar-
tificial flies, but with such materials, particularly
feathers, as enable him to repair his losses, and
imitate nature upon the spot, is an important arti-
cle of the fly-fisher's equipment ; his rod, howev-
er, deserves the first consideration. The wood is
hickory ; it is twelve and a half feet long ; it has
but three joints, which are ferruled only on one end
for the sake of lightness; the butt is solid, very
large in the hand, and tapers very suddenly ; into
the end of it a spike of five inches in length,
thin like a knife, is made to screw, for the purpose
of supporting the rod upright in the ground, as this
is a position in which it is least exposed to dan-
ger ; the length of the spike is required to give it
firmness in the ground in which it is thrust, which
is often of a sandy or mossy nature — finally, when
put together, it weighs but thirteen or fourteen
ounces without the spike, and may be held all day
at the extremity, or, as some prefer, above the
winch, without the least fatigue, and is under as
much command as a coach-whip. A reel or winch
is indispensable ; it should be such as is called
multiplying, with which advantage is taken in ex-
hausting the fish, by winding up the line with greater

TROUT AND ANGLING. 339

rapidity, whenever it becomes relaxed. The line
should be about thirty yards long, and made of pa-
tent silk and hair, either of a green or gray color ;
smaller lines, made of that indispensable mate-
rial, gut, are also necessary ; these are called
" casting lines" and sometimes "foot lengths" and
are attached, as occasion may require, to the prin-
cipal line, for the purpose of falling with less vio-
lence upon the water. A line made of hair, or
silk and hair wove together, is preferred, (indeed
no fly-fisher ever uses any other,) on account of its
not becoming heavy and saturated with water,
like lines of silk and other materials, which cling
to the rod, when wet and swelled, fall with vio-
lence when the fly is cast, and are not delivered
freely through the rings of the rod.

There are some small materials which may
prove convenient, all duly noticed in every book
on angling, such as the clearing ring, the landing
hook, &c. The fish pannier, which should be of
a middle size, and the landing net, are however in-
dispensable. The handle of the latter should be
made of the lightest wood, about five feet long,
and the bow of the net about twelve inches in di-
ameter.

The landing net is carried under the left arm,
and beside the use for which it is designed, of
landing the fish, it often proves serviceable in

340 TROUT AND ANGLING.

sounding the depth of a bog, or breaking the force
of a fall.

Having thus described the most material parts
of the angler's apparatus, we proceed to say,
that success will depend upon the expertness with
which the fly is cast, and this it would be in
vain to attempt, in the teeth of even a gentle
breeze. He must take advantage of the wind, and
if it blows from him, the fly may be cast to a
distance with great precision. Much depends on
practice, and to some it has proved a knack very
difficult to acquire.

Two flies are generally used, termed technical-
ly, a dropper, and a stretcher, the latter being at
the extremity of the line, and both made to re-
move at pleasure, by a simple arrangement of the
casting line. The trout of which we were speak-
ing, and to which we now return as compared to
the sea- trout, yet to be noticed, has a large
mouth, dark within ; the general complexion of the
skin, particularly about the head, is of a deep
brown color ; the spots are bright, and the pecto-
ral fins often of a reddish tinge.

A fish in good condition, of a pound weight,
measures fourteen inches in length. The color of
the flesh is various in different waters, in some it
is of a cream-color, in others white, which is the
most usual, and in others, again, of a pink or

TROUT AND ANGLING. 341

salmon hue, depending, no doubt, upon their
food. If any, however, deserve the name of sal-
mon-trout, it should be those only which resemble
the salmon in the color of the flesh, since in that
particular the salmon never vary, which the trout
often do*

Though their average size and weight is much
the same, but falling short of that wThich is usually
ascribed to them ; still there is in every water some
peculiarity by which the fish may be distinguish-
ed, some being darker, some of a more shining
hue, and some of a fuller form. And there are
also exceptions as to the fact of the uniformity of
their size5 for they are known, in one stream to be
of a very minute description, not longer than min-
nows, yet perfectly formed and beautiful fish,
while in another stream the average is large, and
small fish seldom seen.

Two pounds may be considered large, yet they
sometimes attain the weight of three. To give,
however, a better idea of the usual size, we should
say, that after a day's fishing, and having return-
ed to the water such as were too small to keep,
the balance would generally compare to the stand-
ard of herrings, a fish well known for their uniform-
ity in this particular.

But here it may be remarked, that it is this
very variation in size, so peculiar to the trout,

342 TROUT AND ANGLING.

which is the delight of the angler. His skill is
constantly liable to be put in requisition, and should
he succeed in securing a larger fish than ever he
had previously taken, his prime object is ac-
complished. He exults in the size, as an offset
to the numbers taken by the companion of his
sport.

It has been correctly remarked, that they will
seize upon any small object in motion on the wa-
ter, for which reason, unless they happen to be
particularly dainty, it is unnecessary to be very
curious in the selection of a fly, — as a proof of
this, and at the same time of their well known vo-
racity, we remember to have taken a trout of about
a pound weight, when on disengaging the hook,
something like a string was observed to hang out
of its mouth. This proved to be the tail of a
mouse, which we drew from the throat of the fish
in a partly digested state. This circumstance
happened in the town of Tyngsborough, in a beau-
tiful stream, which take it for all in all, is as a
trout-brook, the very beau ideal of the angler's im-
agination, and is one fact, to which many others
might be added, that they are not over particular
in their food.

We shall mention but one more, occurring
in the town of Sandwich, in the well known
" Monument River." On opening a fish of about

TROUT AND ANGLING. 343

the same weight, the stomach was found to con-
tain a stone — we will not be so indefinite as to
say " about the size of a piece of chalk," but
weighing an ounce and a half.

It may be hence inferred that the fish in this river
or estuary, as it may be called, are rather short of
food, which is the fact, — they are consequently
poor and in bad condition, feeding on sand-fleas,
and a few minnows, and are the most inferior of
all the sea trout, peculiar to a part of the country
to which we shall presently refer.. — The sensibili-
ty of the angler is relieved by the belief that, in
fish, the organs of feelings are somewhat obtuse.
If this is true, the opponents to the sport are dis-
armed of the only argument which can be alleged
against it, viz : its cruelty. If, however, they mean
to apply the charge not only to the fish, but to the
worm or other living bait with which they are tak-
en, the fly-fisher at least, must be exempted
from such an imputation. The impaling of the
writhing worm does no violence to his tender sen-
sibility, neither does the lively minnow quiver upon
his hook.

Provided with his book of flies, he pursues the
pleasure of his sport guiltless of its only objec-
tion. Still farther, to remove what is urged
against fishing on the score of its cruelty, we
may notice how frequently the trout is hook-

344 TROUT AND ANGLING.

ed a second time, with the hook which but
a few moments before his struggling had de-
tached, fixed firmly in his jaw. In fact, the loss
of a favorite fly, is generally attended with the
consolation that it may be thus recovered again.

Once angling with the bait by the side of a
friend, we struck*, trout, and he shortly doing the
same, on raising our rods, a fine fish was suspended
between us. It was judged to belong to him
whose hook was deepest. We have heard it said
that it was necessary to the existence of the fresh
water trout that they should periodically visit the
sea, but this notion is too ridiculous to deserve
a serious contradiction. The innumerable ob-
structions of our rivers and rivulets now-a-days,
most effectually prevent it. On the contrary we
say farther, that there is a small description of
trout often found in such streams as flow into the
tide waters, that have this opportunity without
availing themselves of it. They are not only na-
tives of the stream, but live within its confines all
the year round.

Alas ! that the manufacturing interest should
clash with the success of the fisheries ! It is not
that we complain of these obstructions as prevent-
ing the fish from going down to the sea ; we should
be content to find them still where nature placed
them. But now, they are dispersed and degen-

TROUT AND ANGLING. 345

erated in quality, the waters are poisoned, and the
legitimate current of the rivers, like the present
course of politics, is forced into new and untried
channels ; so that in the anguish of our hearts,
adopting a distich to the teeming times, and blend-
ing the patriot's apprehension with the angler's re-
gret, the thought occurs to us that

'Nullification is vexation.
Division is as bad — "

For such is the creed of him who is both a lover
of his country and its enjoyments. But if fortu-
nately chance should have directed his thoughts
and steps to a more favored scene —

rt Where purple violets lurk

With all the lowly children of the shade — "

there, having passed a day of temperate pleasure,
far from the world of strife, having tried conclu-
sions with none but the companion of his toil, or
the victims of his skill, he lingers till " the evening
shades prevail," then homeward-bound returns,
his basket heavy as his heart is light.

By the influence of a distinguished individual
who occasionally indulges in angling, as a relief
from the cares of an arduous profession and a pub-
lic life, an act of the Legislature of Massachusetts

346 TROUT AND ANGItlNG.

was passed, imposing a penalty of fifty cents for
each trout taken in any other way except with the
rod and line. It is to be regretted however, that
the intention of extending the protection of the
law to this estimable fish, has not been altogether
realized : the law exists, but is disregarded.

Factories and saw-mills have done their part to-
wards the work of extermination, and the destruc-
tive net bids fair to do the rest. But though
much diminished from these causes, there are more
or less waters all over this state, and particularly
in Plymouth county, and Barnstable county on
Cape Cod, where the fish live and thrive in the
undisturbed possession of their element.

In no place, however, do we remember to have
seen them in such abundance as in Duke's county,
upon Martha's Vineyard ; and it is perhaps from
this very circumstance that they are held in so lit-
tle estimation, the preference, as an article of food,
being given to the silvery " neshaw eel," as it is
called ; neither has the pleasure of taking them
ever entered into the minds of the people. It
may well be supposed then, how favorable these
circumstances must have proved, not only to their
preservation and wonderful increase, but also to
their attaining that respectable growth which en-
titles them to the name of " old settlers." It was
here in the month of November last, and of course

TROUT AND ANGLING. 347

in their spawning time, while returning home from
a ramble among the heaths and hills of Chilmark
and Tisbury, that crossing the principal brook of
the island, our attention was attracted towards the
agitated state of the waters, and never do we recol-
lect so fully to have realized the expression of its be-
ing "alive with fish," as on this occasion. As we
carelessly descended the course of the brook, they
were constantly rushing before us, but on a closer
and more careful inspection, they might be discern-
ed lying dormant in the gravelly shallows with their
back fins out of water, watching their spawn, occa-
sionally darting out, as danger in the shape of some
unwelcome intruder approached the object of their
care.

Departing once more from the intention of con-
fining these remarks to the trout of Massachusetts
alone, it may be here stated that with the excep-
tion of the Vineyard alone, there is no place with-
in our knowledge where they appeared to be so
numerous as in the river at Dennysville, in the
state of Maine. They were in all respects like
those we have been describing. They were
found in all parts of the river, but more par-
ticularly in certain spots where a cold brook en-
tered and mingled with its waters, called trout-
holes ; in such places they were congregated in im-
mense numbers.

348 TROUT AND ANGLING.

Had these been the only object of a visit to a
part of the country and a stream, which consid-
ering their numerous attractions to the eye of the
angler, may be viewed as unequalled, there would
have been ample field for gratification. But on
the contrary, being prepared, and fishing for sal-
mon, their numbers proved rather annoying, than
otherwise.

At this time, the late season, and some other
obstacles, interfered with the success of our en-
deavors to take the salmon with the rod, line and
artificial fly ; an achievement which had been rare-
ly attempted, and probably never accomplished,
unless by foreigners, except in the single instance
of one of our party, who on a previous visit to this
wild river, in a more propitious season, had the
good fortune to realize that object, which is said to
constitute the apex of the angler's ambition.

Proceeding with the order in which we arrang-
ed the three principal varieties of trout peculiar to
this state and its vicinity, we come now to the last,
and by far the most esteemed, viz : — the sea-
trout. They are found, as may be inferred from
the name, in the salt and brackish waters of tide
rivers, creeks and inland bays, in various parts
of this and the adjoining states. But with the ex-
ception of "Fire-Place" on Long Island, we are
not aware of their being known in the same plen-

TROUT AND ANGLING. 349

ty and perfection as in u Waquoit Bay" upon
Cape Cod ; a place of well known resort, and to
which our remarks will more particularly apply.
Waquoit Bay is a large expanse of shallow wa-
ter upon the southern shore of Cape Cod ; it was
so called by the aborigines, who in this respect
were governed by the suggestions of nature, from
the resemblance of the sound of the word to that
which is emitted by the male quail at the time of
incubation.

A number of small streams are discharged into
it, which render its waters slightly brackish, and it
has but one narrow outlet to the sea. The soil
in the country generally, but particularly in the
neighborhood of this bay, is of a sandy, sterile qual-
ity, but nature, which has been rather niggardly
in this respect, has made ample amends, not only
in the superior quality of the trout of which we are
speaking, but of other fine fish, such as eels, basse,
he, with which its waters abound.

There is another neighboring bay, called (CPop-
ponesset," upon the same shore, (scarcely less fa-
mous for the sea-trout than Waquoit,) into which
the celebrated Marshpee river flows, perhaps the
greatest resort of anglers in New England for the
sea-trout, after they have begun to ascend the fresh
water streams. When taken from the salt water
early in the spring, they are in high perfection,

350 TROUT AND ANGLING

and nothing can exceed their piscatory symmetry.
The general appearance of the skin is of a silvery
brightness ; the back being of a greenish and
mackerel complexion ; the spots of a vermilion
color, mixed with others of a faint yellow, and
sometimes slightly tinged with purple, extend the
whole length on each side of the lateral line ; the
fins are light in color, firm in texture, and together
with the tail are rather shorter and more rounded
than in the common trout ; they have a firm com-
pactness of form from head to tail, which accounts
for the superior sprightliness of their motions ;
the head and the mouth are very small, and the
latter never'black inside like the common or fresh
water trout; the flesh is even redder — or rather,
we should say, more pink-colored than the sal-
mon, to which by many, they are preferred as a
delicacy, having, like the salmon, much of what
is called the curd or fat between the flakes.

A fish of a pound weight, measures about eleven
inches in length. Their average size is consider-
ably larger than the fresh water or brook trout —
having been taken in the waters to which we re-
fer, of nearly five pounds weight. Such instances
however, are rare, three pounds being considered a
very large fish. We may here remark respecting
their size, that it is considered very good luck when
after a day's fishing ten or a dozen will average a

TROUT AND ANGLING. 351

pound each, and we have a recollection of a few
days only which have shown a greater result ; we
mean to each individual. We do not remember
of ever seeing a poor fish of this kind taken ; they
are invariably in good condition, let the size be
what it will ; their principal food is the minnow
and the shrimp, particularly the latter, with which,
early in the season, their stomachs are found to be
filled ; they feed upon the minnow rather later in
the season, when the increasing warmth of the
water invites it to leave the warmer springs of
fresh water, where it has passed the winter,
and venture into the shallows round the margin
of the bay ; it then becomes an easy prey to the
voracious trout, which pursues it with despe-
rate boldness to the very feet of the angler as he
stands in the water, obliging it in shoals to
leap from the surface, and sometimes even to be
cast on shore in its attempts to escape his hungry
jaws. There is a place called minnoiv-cove, where
they are very plentiful, particularly in the boggy
marsh holes, in which they collect in the spring so
abundantly, that half a net full may be sometimes
taken at a single dip.

At this time, however, they are out of the reach
ofthe trout, though they are on the whole, the
best bait ; the shrimp on the contrary, living as
they do among the eel-grass in the bay, which

352 TROUT AND ANGLING.

also affords shelter to the trout, being more with-
in reach, may consequently be said to supply their
principal food, at least through the winter months.
As it is necessary in the pursuit of all game to be
governed by a knowledge of its particular food, so
it may be said of the sea-trout, their motions while
in the salt water being regulated by those of the
minute fish upon which they live. Both minnows
and shrimps are more or less affected by the action
of the tide, particularly the latter, which in its re-
flux sweeps the 'passive shrimp in shoals across a
sandy eddy of the bay into the very mouths of the
expectant trout, who there collect and lie in wait
to feast upon them.

It may be hence inferred that the shrimp is a
good bait, and so it is, — the only objection to it, is
that of its not being sufficiently tough upon the
hook, and therefore stolen with such ease by the
fish as to require very frequent rebaiting ; in this
respect, the minnow has the advantage, and may
be considered the established bait for the sea-
trout.

If ever so well provided, it would be in vain to
fish in the broad waters of the bays to which we
allude — an occasional trout is sometimes taken
while following the edge of the eel-grass which
forms the channel, but it is not the way to fill
the basket. They are governed, as we have ob-

TROUT AND ANGLING. 353

served, by the operation of the tide upon the bait,
which occasions their collecting in two well known
rendezvous or sand spits which project into the
bay, forming a current favorable to the purpose of
their resort.

To give some idea of the numbers which are
occasionally taken, it may not be amiss to state that
upon one of the points alluded to, being the one
of least note, and forming a sort of narrow to a
division of the bay, w7e perceive by a memoran-
dum made at the time, that two persons took
eighty sea-trout, the weight of which, including
two baskets four pounds each, was fiftynine
pounds. This wras on the fourth of April, the
wind west, flood tide most of the time, and the
bait equally shrimp and minnow. Though the
artificial fly is by no means used for sea-trout,
with much success, before they are led by instinct
to change the nature of their food with the ele-
ment in which it is formed, yet it is customary in
this sort of fishing to have a red fly, as it is called,
but more strictly speaking, a caterpillar, perma-
nently attached to the line ; this with one bait,
either the shimp or minnow, is the common prac-
tice, by which two fish are often taken at the same
time, and occasionally three, as we have once
seen, when the three varieties of bait were used
together.

23

354 TROUT AND ANGLING.

There is another sandy point, and the only one
in the bay, named Poponessett, previously alluded
to, which forms one side of the channel called
" Sampson's Narrows," not less famous for the
size and quality of the trout than Waquoit, though
not so remarkable for numbers. A basket of
twenty pounds capacity is often filled in this spot,
at one tide, and it is worthy of notice that, prob-
ably on account of the action of the current upon
the varipus sand-bars, the flood is decidedly best
upon this of which we are speaking, while in the
other bay the ebb tide is preferable. If we should
be called upon to give a preference to the trout of
any particular place over all the others which we
have seen, the decision would be in favor of those
of Sampson's Narrows, as possessing all the fine
qualities heretofore enumerated in the sea-trout,
with compactness of form and richness of flavor in
a more remarkable degree.

With a view to make further discoveries of the
resort of fish, we have followed the shore of one
of these bays, so far as the very outlet to the sea.
No addition, however, was made to the stock of
knowledge already possessed. The only trout
which was taken at this outlet, confirms the fact
often noticed in other places, that the nearer they
are taken to the sea, and the Salter the w7ater> the
more they possess the greenish color peculiar to

TROUT AND ANGLING. 355

the back of the mackerel, as well as a more dazzling
and silvery brightness, compared to those living
in waters at all brackish. That some idea may
be formed of the size of the fish, not unusu-
ally taken in these waters, and particularly at the
sandy point last referred to, we may state the cir-
cumstance of our having caught, a few years since,
on the 24th of March, three trout, which together
weighed eight and a quarter pounds — two of them
approaching very nearly to three pounds each, be-
sides many others at the same time, over a pound,
their stomachs being filled with shrimps ; on this
occasion both wind and tide were favorable —
the latter for sea-trout being much the most impor-
tant.

We have now to mention a well known and
by far most frequented spot in all these waters,
called u Poket Point" in Waquoit Bay. Its
name like that of the bay, is no doubt of Indian
origin, and agreeably to the custom already re-
ferred to, might have been given to it for the very
simple reason of its poking out in so striking a
manner as to form those singularly abrupt projec-
tions from the shore or main land, generally known
by the name of u Sand Spits." Be that as it
may, it is a very remarkable place, and for many
years, has been no less the resort of the angler,
than the great abundance of fine sea-trout which

356 TROUT AND ANGLING.

form the object of his visits. But to describe it
more particularly. Having proceeded about a
quarter of a mile, or it may be nearer a half, from
the landing place, (which by the way is that point
we have previously mentioned as being the second
best,) along the fringed upland which skirts the
marsh, we come to a gently sweeping curve of the
grassy shore ; on the other side there is a similar
curve or swell of the bay, both of which, inclining
together towards the extremity, form the celebra-
ted spot of which we are now speaking. It is a
few hundred feet from the upland to the end of
the point, which at low water particularly, is a
mere sand bank, and upon which there is no other
vegetable growth to be seen except the coarse,
rank beach grass, so peculiar to the sterile shores
" of the stormy Cape Cod."

The distance between high and low water mark
upon the point, is but a very few feet ; indeed,
the tides in these land-locked bays are so much
governed by the force and direction of the winds
that it is frequently difficult to tell whether
it is high or low, rising or falling ; in moderate
weather, however, there can be no doubt, and the
calculation of high water in this bay, is about two
hours later than the almanac. At low water,
there is a wading-place from near the point to the
opposite shore which forms one side of " Child's

TROUT AND ANGLING. 357

River" the current of which sets against the point
and adds to its advantages as a resort for the fish,
especially if the wind happens to be in an opposite
direction, for the froth which is consequently col-
lected upon the surface, is what the trout, beyond
all' other fishj so much delight in, and they are
seen at such times, jumping their whole length out
of water, their bright broad sides glistening in the
sun.

This state of things however, is not always the
most favorable for fishing ; for at such times it
may be sport to the fish, but by no means to the
angler ; kw in fact are taken upon the surface,
and they evince little or no acquaintance with the
artificial fly, that which we have heretofore men-
tioned being a sort of decoy, serving but to attract
their attention towards the more deadly bait. One
circumstance, adding very much to the pleasure
of fishing at this, and indeed at other points of a
similar character, is that of the line never becoming
entangled, or the hook fouled, the action of the
current, particularly at ebb tide, which for reasons
in relation to the bait, is the best time, being such
as to keep the line always free. Neither is there
much annoyance from the hideous sculpin. It does
occasionally happen however, and is a misfortune
soon ascertained by the heavy strain upon the
line, and the dead weight upon the hook ; we

358 TROUf AND ANGLING.

are consequently prepared to deal with him as
soon as he reaches terra firma, which is not always
realized without serious consequences to an appa-
ratus, a little too delicate for this species of fishing.

Though we profess to feel nothing like a mor-
bid sensibility, nor to expend our small stock of
compassion upon this maritime monster, yet we
have feeling ; but it would be affectation to say
that under these circumstances we have no ill
will towards the sculpin, considering the great
disappointment he has occasioned us by not being
a trout.

We would not however, torment this much
abused fish by thrusting a stick into his jaws and
turning him adrift, thereby putting an effectual
veto upon his "biting times," as some of our chil-
dren do ; we would merely put him out of harm's
way as effectually and as speedily as possible, with
that tenderness which a due regard to his feelings
and our own comfort may dictate. His indomita-
ble love of his native element, is evinced by fre-
quent short and powerful jerks, but finally having
baffled his spirit of opposition, and with quite as
much regard to the safety of our tackle, as to his
views of a change of element, dragged the unwil-
ling monster to the sand, we disregard the ang-
ling rule, by which one should

" Gently disengage, and in (he stream again indulgent throw.'

TROUT AND ANGLING. 359

but on the contrary, with feelings by no means pro-
pitiated in his favor by the threatening erection of
his horns, and his obvious objection to a restoration
of the hook, first having disposed of the rod by
placing it in the only safe position, that is, in an
upright one, by means of the spike, then take the
staff of the landing net, which is also armed with
a spear, for this and other purposes, seize a quiet
moment as he lies upon the shore, and force it
quickly through his head into the sand, by which
operation he is instantly and therefore humanely,
deprived ever after of an indulgence in his pro-
pensities of smelling, biting, and jerking ; we then
withdraw the handle of the net from the sand,
with the impaled sculpin u dead as a herring"
upon it, after which, his mouth being open for the
first time since the enjoyment of his personal ac-
quaintance, the hook is disengaged with perfect con-
venience. Finally, the handle of the net acting as a
powerful lever, the unfortunate " sea-devil " is cast
from it with that force and to that distance which
settles the question of further annoyance ; then
into the water, splash he falls like Lucifer, never
to bite again.

But enough, perhaps too much of sculpins —
let us therefore return to the trout. Their only
screen from the view of the angler at the point, is
the depth of the water, and it is for this reason, as

360 TROUT AND ANGLING.

they can probably see though not seen, that a
breeze upon the surface is absolutely necessary.
There must be a ripyle so as to render objects, if
they are seen, at least broken and indistinct to the
fish ; even a very light breeze, which comes par-
ticularly favorable from the southeast and south,
added to the tide current is sufficient, but noth-
ing can be done in a calm. It is true that on first
throwing in, a few fish are taken, laying as they
do when undisturbed, near the sand-bank in watch
for the bait ; but the effect of the natural timidity
peculiar to the species, is to make them recede
farther and farther, until being out of his reach, —
the angler, notwithstanding his having pursued
them half leg deep, finally abandons the sport
until a more auspicious time. Favored, however,
by the united circumstances of tide and wind,
plenty of bait, and the established equipments, he
has every prospect of all the enjoyment which he
anticipated. But the idea of enjoyment, to those
not of the fraternity will appear rather enigmati-
cal, when it is premised that he stands for hours at
a time over his knees in the water, (and here it
maybe remarked, by way of parenthesis, that as but
two or three can fish, conveniently, at one time,
upon this and the other similar points, they cer-
tainly, having the ground to themselves, have no
desire to refute the maxim of de gustibus non est

TROUT AND ANGLING. 361

disputandum,) but it does not follow that his feet,
though cold, are wet, being protected by his imper-
vious india-rubber leggings, in which, after some
hours' pressure of the water, there is not the least
appearance of moisture, except wThat arises from
the natural exudation from the skin.

Even as early as February, the trout may be
taken in this and other places, and as before ob-
served, are in high perfection ; but the cold, at this
season requires to be guarded against, and the an-
gler is consequently supplied with a pea-jacket, as
it is called, among his other defences ; his dress,
in fact, is regulated according to the season, March,
April and May being the most favorable months.
Though by no means giving it the preference, he
likes the fishing because he likes the fish, and
more particularly, for its novelty, being the first
fruits of the season.

His other gear, as varying strictly from fly-fish-
ing, are these : the rod should be rather longer
and stouter, though, well managed, the fly-rod
may be used without danger and with still greater
convenience.

Casting lines may be used or not, at pleasure,
but a single shot of the size called B. is absolute-
ly necessary. Avery minute swivel is used for the
double purpose of spinning the bait and preserving
the line from snarling. Several spare hooks, already

362 TROUT AND ANGLING.

ganged upon silk-worm gut, must be at hand to
repair losses, as well as shot previously split.
Short casting lines will be necessary only in ease
of using a small red or gaudy fly, of which a slight
stock should also be provided. The meshes of
the landing net should be small, for the purpose
not only of landing, or it may be said dipping up
the fish, but also for catching the live bait. If the
net is carried as recommended m fly-fishing, un-
der the left arm, the fish should be unhooked over
it, so that if it happens to drop, it will drop into the
net and not into the water. A japaned box is
strapped round the waist, with apartments for the
two kinds of bait. The winch and line are the
same as that described for fly-fishing. The pock-
et book is well supplied with materials to refit, re-
pair, and replenish, and the basket, if not carried
upon the back, is left in a convenient situation
near the edge of the water.

There have been incredible numbers of trout
taken at the celebrated point to which we more
particularly refer ; hundreds, and perhaps we may
say thousands every year, nor is it perceived, on
the whole, that they are diminished in proportion.
From particular causes, however, generally attrib-
utable to the state of the weather, there are sea-
sons of scarcity ; as a proof of this, we may men-
tion the circumstance which happened a few years

TROUT AND ANGLING.

since, of a change of temperature attended with
snow, which suddenly succeeded a few uncommon-
ly warm days, during which the trout, invited by
the warmth of the water, rather than governed
by the early season, began to change their quarters
and ascend the streams, agreeably to the instinct of
their nature. The consequence was, that chill-
ed by the snow, the streams and shallows near
the shore became a mass of sludge, whence the
trout, dead and dying, were collected in great
numbers, as well as from the edge of the marshes,
where they were left by the receding tide. The
mortality was such as to occasion a perceptible
diminution in the quantity and size of the fish, on
that as well as the following season.

Instances of this nature are, however, of rare oc-
currence, but we wish that as much could be said
of the shameful practice of netting, which, under
pretence of taking herring, is annually perpetra-
ted, more particularly in Child7 s and Qiiashnut
rivers, in defiance of the well known law against
it. It may be said of this and every other place,
where trout are found, that fair fishing never thin-
ned their numbers yet.

Since upon Poket Point, there is nothing to
screen the angler, on first approaching, it is best
to be cautious, particularly if it happens to be a
calm time. It not unfrequently happens that two

364 TROUT AND ANGLING.

persons on first throwing in, will both instantly take
double game, as it is called.

If it is late in May, two of them may be striped
Bass, which we have seen repeatedly taken to-
gether ; for it is in May that these fish run in
from the sea. At that time they are in such
fine condition that there is no reason to regret the
chance of taking one occasionally, if it were for
nothing else but to give variety to the repast in an-
ticipation. After premising that there is never a
day in the season of fishing, but more or less trout
may be taken at this point — always enough to eat ;
— still, to give a better idea of the numbers, though
perhaps incurring the charge of dry detail, we would
now refer to such days as have been considered
fortunate ; and we mention them only as coming
within our own observation, and such as every fre-
quenter of these waters must also have experi-
enced.

April the twentysecond, two persons took twen-
tyseven pounds principally upon this point : a
great part of the time the tide was ebb, and of
course favorable, but the wind being north-east,
by no means so, which is one of the many proofs
of their capriciousness for the want of a better
reason, already adverted to. The angler, of all
persons, therefore, should never despair. On the
ninth of April — the year is of no consequence —

TROUT AND ANGLING. 265

two persons took, in the same spot, fiftyeight trout,
weighing thirty pounds ; and this gives a correct
idea of their average weight of half a pound, many
being not much over a quarter, a considerable
number up to a pound, and but few reaching the
weight of two pounds and over.

It would be well if some who are in the habit of
angling here, would remember the petition of the
fish in the fable, and release all trout under the
size of minnows, instead of basketing every one
they catch, merely to swell the number, without
regard to weight, beside the detriment to future
sport — such conduct is a wanton sacrifice of life,
which no true angler will countenance.

On the seventh of May, twentynine pounds
were taken by two persons, the number of fish not
known, but probably between fifty and sixty. We
shall merely add as an instance of the greatest re-
sult of fishing at the two principal points here al-
luded to, of which we have any recollection, that
in the middle of April 1829, there were taken by
two persons, in five day's fishing, 296 sea trout,
weighing 191 pounds. On one of the five days
the number was eightytwo, and the weight sixty-
one pounds, thirty fish of one of the parties weigh-
ing thirty pounds and a quarter, and the largest
two pounds and eleven ounces. The wind and
weather on the whole were favorable, but even

366 TRO.UT AND ANGLING.

when otherwise, it made, as sometimes happens,
but little difference in the sport

By a singular coincidence, though in perfect 'keep-
ing with the genius of the place, the names of
Phinney, Fish and Handy, are among the occu-
pants of the surrounding soil. To those who de-
sire to be near the scene of action, the house of
the former affords substantial comforts, while that
of the latter has been from time immemorial the
point cVappui of the visiter, let him come from
where he will. It is here that we commence the
note of preparation, arrange the taclde and select
the bait. It is here we often linger upon the sun-
ny slope that fronts his lowly cot, or seated at the
window, watch the sluggish tide, or favoring
breeze ; or if detained within, wTe listen to the
aged veteran, while with kindling enthusiasm he
conjures up a series of such incidents as form the
humble part he took in achieving his country's inde-
pendence, or dwells with doting fondness and
cheering satisfaction, upon the circumstance of his
eyes having once been blessed with the sight of
the glorious Washington and Lafayette, as the
brightest reminiscence of his unpretending history.
Grateful for the pittance of his country's bounty,
he contrives to live ; his utmost wants all realized
in the necessaries of life. But still, without the
treasures of the sea, his boat and spear, it.might

TROUT AND ANGLING. 367

go hard with the aged pensioner, whom we have
sometimes seen of a calm dark night engaged in
the picturesque process of eeling ; the boat gently
cleaving the smooth surface ; a bright fire kindled
in the bow ; his attenuated form standing erect in
the centre, and seen by the glare of light in strong
relief contrasted with the murky darkness around,
darting his spear at times into the lurid water ; then
like a trident brandishing it aloft, the very person-
ification of old Neptune himself.

As a short digression from our subject, but con-
nected with eeling — an occupation so essential to
the poorer inhabitants, that the eel spear may be
called the staff of life — we have to state the cir-
cumstance as related to us, which happened in
these waters some fifty years ago, of an Indian
who one dark night was beset by a host of wild
geese. Attracted by the bright glare of the flam-
ing pine knots, they approached his boat in a dense
black mass, croaking most vehemently, rushing at
the fire, which they soon flapped out and scattered
with their wings. His only defence was his pad-
dle, and this he laid about him with such effect to
prevent the canoe from sinking by their numbers,
that on reaching the shore with great difficulty,
he found his cargo unexpectedly consisting of wild
geese instead of eels.

Having now noticed the principal bays and

368 TROUT AND ANGLING.

points, where the sea trout are found in the great-
est numbers and perfection, compared to all the
other tide waters in the state, we proceed to men-
tion the two well known rivers, into which upon
the return of warm weather they begin to migrate,
called Child's and Marshpee rivers, or in other
words, we speak of the sea trout in fresh water.
The first mentioned river is shallow and will be
found more or less brackish according to its prox-
imity to the bay into which it runs ; the banks are not
wooded, and it receives the water of a brook that
takes its rise in springs and bogs at only a short
distance from the head of tide waters, or rather we
should say where the fresh water is backed by the
impulse of the flowing tide. As this brook is alto-
gether unfavorable for a mill, on account of its
short and sWgish character, the trout have unin-
terrupted access to its head waters, where they re-
pair in spawning time, but seem in no haste to run
in any great numbers at an earlier period of the
season, which fact is peculiar to this stream, and
no doubt is to be accounted for by the greater
abundance of good feed below.

Occasionally this boggy brook affords good di-
version in its few approachable parts, but generally
speaking they are found collected in one or more
of the little shallow basins, a successive chain of
which forms this peculiar river. It has neither

TROUT AND ANGLING. 359

shelving banks, or rocks, or brush, the only cover
for the fish being a green spongy weed at the bot-
tom, and so easily detached by a little too much
wind, as to be very annoying to the angler. In-
deed there is an end of fishing whenever this sub-
stance is inclined to float upon the surface, as we
have often noticed in this, as well as other rivers.
Child's River however, though by no means pos-
sessing the rural charms in which the fly-fisher so
much delights, or the difficulties which it is his am-
bition to contend with and overcome ; has no supe-
rior as a place favorable to the practice of the in-
cipient state of the art, particularly on account of
its freedom from the usual impediments, enabling
the angler to cast his fly without difficulty. In
this water we have found the same red fly already
mentioned, very successful, as also others of a
bright and showy description, which certainly for
sea-trout are the most killing. And here it would
not be amiss to mention the materials composing
this fly, and forming the great dependence of the
angler for sea-trout. The hook is small and of the
kind called limerick, ganged of course upon silk
worm gut, the snood of which may be the whole
length of the gut if used for a stretcher, but if used
for a dropper, either with another fly, or with the
bait, it should be but three or four inches long, and
the gut of the stiffest kind, to prevent its winding
24

370 TROUT AND ANGLING.

round the casting line when wet, as it is inclin-
ed to do. Its distance from the end fly or stretch-
er is about three feet, but if bait is used, it should
be at least double that distance. Its body or dub-
bing may be made of red worsted, mohair or floss
silk, the last being neatest, and objectionable in all
flies only on account of its greater liability to hold
the water. Then comes the hackle, from the neck
feathers of a white rooster dyed red, which is
wound round the body, making a very simple j^y,
so called, but more resembling a caterpillar, as it
will be observed it has no wings.

When three flies are used, there can be no better
arrangement for them than the following. The
first drop-fly, to be thirty inches from the stretch-
er, the gut only four inches long, and of the stout-
est kind. The second drop-fly to be thirtyfive
inches from the first, and the gut eight inches long.
The advantage of observing this fixed distance be-
tween the flies, is that of their all three coming in
contact with the water in the ordinary position of
the line after it is cast.

Highly as we appreciate it as a pleasing resource
to the angler, and forming one object for the
exercise of his skill, it is not intended to add to
these remarks our own experience in the art of
fly making ; it will however be proper to state
the names of those mentioned in the books on

TROUT AND ANGLING. 371

angling — where ample directions may be seen —
of such as are said, and we have proved to be, stan-
dard flies, that is, such as are found to be good at all
times and in all places. They are the palmer flies,
namely, the red hackle, yellow hackle, grouse
hackle, etc ; and wing flies, such as the green
drake or may-fly, the march brown, and indeed any
and all of that class of insects known by the name
of phryganeae and ephemerae, to which may be
added the grasshopper as well as beetles, for " there
is hardly any insect that flies, including the wasp,
the hornet, the bee and the butterfly, that does
not become at sometime the prey of fishes."

If the angler has half a dozen of each of the
palmers, as well as a small stock of the wing flies
above alluded to, he may be considered well pro-
vided, particularly if he has also feathers and other
materials to repair his loss in case either variety
should be exhausted. The manufacture of flies is
a very nice operation, and more suited to the del-
icate fingers of females, by whom they are princi-
pally made in England, Scotland, &x. The very
best of them are but rude imitations of nature, but
the practised eye will distinguish at a glance those
that are made by rule, from those that are made
by a novice in the art. From our own experience
we have been of opinion that quite as much stress
is laid upon the necessity of an infinite variety of

372 TROUT AND ANGLING.

flies as is consistent with fact ; neither do we be-
lieve that the most killing will prove to be such
flies, as at the time the trout happen to be taking.
For on the contrary we have often noticed that a
totally different fly may be used with success,
and it may too, be unlike any insect in creation,
for which reason, they seem to give it the prefer-
ence. There are however certain general rules to
be observed, such as a dark fly for a bright day,
and a bright fly for a cloudy day ; a small fly for
calm water and a larger one for a rapid. The
great difficulty in fly making is in the wings, nay,
it is not only difficult but impossible to imitate
with anything like truth to nature, those little retic-
ulated gossamer transparencies, neither would the
flies be any better if we could.

A judicious selection of feathers then is all that
can be done ; they have the advantage of any sub-
stance more delicate, which would not bear the
use. The smaller the fly the more difficult it is
to make, and this accounts for the artificial ones
being so out of all proportion ; though we do not
believe they are any the worse for it. Indeed it
would be a very difficult thing not only to procure
a hook sufficiently small, but to make a fly so very
minute as to be scarcely perceptible on the wa-
ter. It frequently happens, in a calm time, that
the surface is covered with an insect so small

TROUT AND ANGLING. 373

that they could not be perceived by the fish if it
was at all agitated by the wind. At such times the
trout are rising in all directions, apparently in
sport, but upon examination they will be found to
have fifty or more of these little specks collected in
the throat. To imitate the size then is out of the
question, the most we can do is to come as near as
possible to the colors, and if we have nothing like
it in our collection, to make one upon the spot,
though it may be twenty times as large.

But enough of calms, the test of an angler's skill.
The most showy and therefore the most killing
salmon flies, resemble nothing which skims the
air; after the body requiring great nicety in
the operation of tying, they are principally made
up of a mass of the most gaudy feathers pos-
sible ; well arranged, gay and attractive as the
butterfly, and intermingling their tints like the pris-
matic colors of the rainbow. Such are the Irish
flies of Martin Kelly, some remarks upon which,
taken from an English Magazine, we here subjoin,
as they apply to fly fishing and fly making in gen-
eral.

" 1 would recommend every man who aspires
to be a first rate salmon fisher, or is likely to
have frequent opportunities of enjoying that noble
sport, to learn the art of fly dressing. The occu-
pation is agreeable, and the pleasure of killing a

374 TROUT AND ANGLING.

salmon with those of one's own manufacture is infi-
nitely greater than that afforded by doing so with
the handy- work of any other artist. The dress-
ing an Irish fly is, it must be admitted, a tedious,
and to do it neatly, rather a difficult operation, and
requires not only practice in the mere mechanical
part of the process, but likewise considerable judg-
ment in the selection and adaptation of the com-
ponent parts. Any man who has been taught to
tie flies, may imitate a pattern correctly enough ;
but it is not so easy a matter, without a model, to
select and mix a good wing, and choose the colors
of the body, legs, head, &c, so as to make a ju-
dicious whole. The merely being able to tie a
neat and pretty looking fly, is not sufficient ; some-
thing more is wanting, and this something, most men
whether regular tackle makers, or amateurs, want,
and nothing but experience and careful and minute
observation will supply the deficiency."

Having made this long detour from Childs' Riv-
er, we now return to it, for the purpose merely of
stating the numbers and size of the fish taken at
one particular time. It was on the eighteenth of
May 1829, that two persons — one of whom wa
an English gentleman, a " brother of the angler,
to whom we are principally indebted for the small
stock of practical skill we possess — took seventy
fine sea-trout, weighing thirtyeight pounds. A

5J

TROUT AND ANGLING. 375

number of the largest weighed about a pound and
a half, but none over. They were nearly all tak-
en with the fly, and most of them with three or
four varieties of those standard flies already men-
tioned, namely, the red and yellow palmer or
hackle, the march brown, and grouse hackle.
The time on the whole was favorable, though the
sun was out, the wind blowing up the river, mild
and gentle.

There is another river which flows into Wa-
quoit Bay, known by the Indian name of Quashnut.
In its tide waters the sea-trout are sometimes col-
lected in considerable numbers. It is at best how-
ever an uncertain place, and never can amount to
much as a trout stream on account of the mill
which obstructs their progress to its upper waters,
to say nothing of the stealthy practice of seining,
before mentioned. And here it may be remarked
that the effect of a mill, as it respects the trout in
a stream, depends very much upon its location. If
it is high up and near the source, its operation is
far less unfavorable to their annual upward tenden-
cy, as many instances might be adduced to prove,
but if on the contrary, as in the instance of the
stream last mentioned, the fall happens to be such
that the mill is erected upon the lower waters, it
proves an effectual barrier to their migrations, and
they desert the stream for one more congenial to

376 TROUT AND ANGLING.

their nature. As it respects this mill, it is a more
desperate case for the fish, than indeed where the
communication with the brook is entirely cut off,
since the improvement of the dam for factory pur-
poses, and the consequent alteration of a waste
way, that now falls in a lofty cascade. We have
been surprised that this arrangement was permit-
ted, since it effectually shuts out the herrings as
well as the trout, the former being so essential to
the support of the poorer class.

We remember in the olden time, when every
drop of water was by no means so precious as it is
now-a-days, that while passing this dam, on our
way to " Poket," it was a common thing to be
accosted by the worthy miller, with an offer of
large trout, which of course we always rejected,
expecting to take larger and better ourselves, nei-
ther did we altogether approve his modus operandi,
simple enough to be^ure, as may be seen by what fol-
lows. Observing that the trout, in their efforts to
struggle through what is called the waste way, were
cast back again by the force of the gorge, into one
particular shallow of the stream ; he there drove a
circle of stakes, making a sort of pound, from
which there was no escape, and whence the
trout thus confined, were taken at pleasure. We
remember to have noticed the same invention,
though upon a larger scale, in Canada, at the up-

TROUT AND ANGLING. 377

per bridge, that crosses the Jacques Cartier River.
A view is given of this wild scene in Mr Vignes
" Six Months in America," taken by himself, rep-
resenting the identical personage with whom we
conversed on the subject of the salmon, while on
a journey in the month of August 1826. But the
circumstance alluded to, being noticed in a short
journal of one of the parties, and also applicable to
our subject, we therefore subjoin an extract from it.

" At seven o'clock we arrived at the beautiful
and romantic spot called Jacques Cartier Upper
Bridge. Though on a smaller scale, it resembles
" Trenton Falls," in the rude features of nature,
the river having worn a deep passage in the solid
rock, through which the impetuous water foams
and tumbles in its progress towards the mighty St
Lawrence.

Two pedestrian highland officers had arrived
from Quebec on an excursion for salmon fishing,
the spot being celebrated in its facilities for the
enjoyment of this sport. With great civility, one
of them perceiving that we were strangers and
travellers, accosted us, and imparted all the infor-
mation possible in the half hour that we were able
to devote to the enjoyment of this interesting scene.
It was with great reluctance that we looked with
the hurried glance of the passing traveller upon a
prospect so truly picturesque, and above all, at the

378 TROUT AND ANGLING.

only place where we had ever yet visited where
the art of angling is enjoyed in its greatest perfec-
tion ; but so it was — we were bound to Cape
Saint to lodge, and even if we had been disposed
to stay, the tavern, which was also the toll-house,
appeared much too small to accommodate our
party without dispossessing the said officers, who
had already taken up their quarters there.

" The salmon are taken with the rod, line and
artificial fly, and often in an eddy of the river very
near the bridge. The water here has scooped
out a vast hollow in the rock ; in this the salmon
were to be seen in the morning when the sun
shone, doggedly still, because seeing as well as
seen, but as the officer observed, all his efforts to
allure them by the most enticing flies, proved inef-
fectual, though he confidently expected better suc-
cess early tomorrow morning ; and well he might,
for we understood from the tollman, in French,
that four were taken yesterday with the hook, one
of which weighed eighteen pounds.

" On the other side of the bridge, up the river,
there was also an elbow in the rock, forming a sort
of natural trap, where the salmon, in attempting to
leap a rapid, were forced back into a small pool,
from which they were taken and removed to another
and more secure pen ; out of this our informant took
one with a dip net, weighing about three pounds, a

TROUT AND ANGLING. 379

size in England called grilse. Though out of season
and very indifferent, it proved a valuable addition
to our viands, cleanliness being a more striking char-
acteristic of Canada, in summer, than good cheer.
On the flat surface of the rock, we were shown the
deep prints of feet, as they are called ; they have
something of the form, to be sure, but are without
doubt the natural effect of the torrent, which when
the river is swollen, covers these places, and has
at some time or other, whirled round loose peb-
bles within them, so as to produce, by abrasion,
these peculiar forms. It was with regret that we
bade adieu to this gem of creation."

The other stream which we proposed to notice,
as being remarkable for its sea-trout, is called
Marshpee Brook or River, and takes its rise from
the Marshpee or Wakeby pond, flowing through the
plantation of the Marshpee tribe of Indians, adjoin-
ing the town of Falmouth and Sandwich, it empties
into the before mentioned Popponesset Bay. Like
many other streams, it is called both a river and a
brook, though it is wrell understood that when the
former term is used, it applies to its lower waters,
and vice versa.

We have little to say of its river part, except
that being much deeper than the one last describ-
ed, the trout are taken sometimes through the ice,
in the winter and early spring, in certain deep

380 TROUT AND ANGLING.

parts, known by the familiar names of the Crow's
Nest, Amos's Landing, he. And here it may be
remarked that, go where you will, let the scene
and the country be ever so uninteresting and in-
describable, there is hardly an acre of ground or
water unprovided with its appropriate name, some
of them very ludicrous, and all familiarly known by
the occupants of the soil. Though this is observ-
able throughout the country generally, it is more
particularly so in all our Indian settlements, and in
that to which we have alluded as much as any.
Mixed and degenerate as they are, it is still grati-
fying to see here and there the slightest vestiges,
and they are few, of the primitive customs of the
sons of the forest. One of these, if not still extant,
must have been so at no very distant period, and
is that of stopping to rest at certain spots in the
roads, (once paths) indicated by a considerable
pile of dried sticks, and called "Indian Taverns."
These are still visible in many places, and were
sustained by the practice of each individual who
passed casting a stick upon the heap

But alas ! even these Indian Tumuli, if they
may be so called, are gradually sinking to decay,
an indication of that total extinction, sure and cer-
tain, which awaits those with whom they origin-
ated. Where is the warlike front, the firm step,
the native pride, the majestic bearing, — where is

TROUT AND ANGLING. 381

the feathered mantle, the gaudy plume, the dead-
ly arrow, and the elastic bow, — where is the
friendly wigwam, and the calumet of peace, —
where ? — all civilized away. Disgrace not the
name of Indian, by applying it to that squalid,
mongrel race who halt exhausted at an Indian
tavern ; they bear the white man's poison, they
stop to drink, where once their ancestors, with
solemn purpose, cast a bough upon the landmark
pile as a propitiatory sacrifice to the Great Spirit ;
but at length a too potent spirit has sacrificed them,
their civilized and degenerate descendants.

One of the most interesting remains of Indian anti-
quity is to be seen upon the banks of Cotuit brook,
on the land of the venerable and worthy Gideon
Hawley, Esq. one of the overseers of the Marsh pee
tribe. It is a large tumulus, so obliterated by time
as hardly to attract notice, but on examination a
regularity of form is perceptible. It is an oblong
square, but not much elevated. There are trees
upon it of a considerable size and spontaneous
growth. The tradition is that of its being the
grave of a large trout, which having forced its way
and pioneered the herrings from the sea, was there
taken and buried. This is ridiculous enough, as
most Indian traditions are ; but should an excava-
tion ever be made, there is but little doubt that the
labors of the antiquarian would be rewarded with

TROUT AND ANGLING.

a sufficiency of bones; they would, however, be of
those the Indian, and not of the trout.*

From the peculiar nature of the stream, the
fishing of Marshpee Brook may be considered as
perfectly sui generis. We have seen the time,
when, as beginners, we had no objection to it,
particularly on account of the great hauls, with
which we sometimes even astonished the natives ;
but as that time has gone by, and nothing short
of doing the thing secundum artem will satisfy us
now ; we shall say merely a few words for the
benefit of all those " pot-fishers " that care more
about the end than the means.

It may then be inferred, from what we have
said, that the use of the fly in this stream, is out of
the question, and so it is ; from one end to the
other, with very little exception, its banks are cov-
ered to the water's edge with a dense mass of pri-
meval foliage, so close, the broad limbs embracing
and intermingling from either side, and " wreathing

* On a recent visit to Cotuit, having visited this Tumulous
or " Trout-Mound," as it is there called, the form was found
to be rather oval than oblong ; an egg cut longitudinally in
halves, will best convey an idea of its shape. We also learnt
that some years since, an excavation was caused to be made
by D. L. Child, Esq. whose expectations in bringing some-
thing to light, interesting to the antiquarian, were net realiz-
ed. We arc still of opinion however, that had the work been
prosecuted to a greater extent, a satisfactory result would have
followed.

TROUT AND ANGLING. 383

their old fantastic roots on high," as effectually to
screen the view of the water. The only way to
fish in Marshpee brook, therefore, is by wading ;
and fortunately, its hard, gravelly bottom, so un-
common in other brooks, but remarkable in this,
renders it perfectly practicable.

Notwithstanding our present predilection for
what we conceive to be a greater refinement of the
art, our thoughts must often recur to Marshpee
and its interesting associations, as being our first
love. Many are the friends who must recip-
rocate in the gratification of having wet a line to-
gether in this enticing stream, of which it may be
truly said, our lines have fallen in pleasant places ;
and among those of the most pleasing kind is
blended the recollection of a successful day, passed
with one whom we delight to honor, and one whose
skilful management in alluring the speckled captive
was, as it were, emblematical of that transcendent
talent, which, as a statesman and a " fisher of men,"
has since made captives of us all. And here it
may be observed, that if great names were requir-
ed to sanction the diversion of angling, and give it
a preference, we can refer to Salmonia, that vade
mecum of the angler, not only for authority of such
a character, but for arguments founded on its ra-
tional enjoyment as a philosophic pursuit.

Halieus there says, " I can find authorities of

384 TROUT AND ANGLING.

all kinds, statesmen, heroes and philosophers ; I
can go back to Trajan, who was fond of angling.
Nelson was a good fly-fisher, and as a proof of his
passion for it, continued the pursuit even with his
left hand. Dr Paley was ardently attached to this
amusement ; so much so, that when the Bishop
of Durham inquired of him, when one of his most
important works would be finished, he said, with
great simplicity and good humor, " My lord, I
shall work steadily at it when the fly-fishing sea-
son is over," as if this were a business of his life.
And I am rather reserved in introducing living
characters, or I would give a list of the highest
names in Britain, belonging to modern times, in
science, letters, arts, and arms, who are ornaments
of this fraternity, to use an expression borrowed
from the freemasonry of our forefathers.

Physicus. — I do not find much difficulty in
understanding why warriors and statesmen, fishers
of men, many of whom I have known particularly
fond of hunting and shooting, should likewise be
attached to angling ; but I own I am at a loss to
find reasons for a love of this pursuit among phi-
losophers and poets.

Halieus. — The search after food is an instinct
belonging to our nature ; and from the savage, in
his rudest and most primitive state, who destroys
a piece of game, or a fish, with a club or spear, to

TROUT AND ANGLING. 385

a man in the most civilized state of society, who
employs artifice, machinery, and the resources of
various other animals, to secure his object, the ori-
gin of the pleasure is similar, and its object the
same ; but that kind of it requiring most art may
be said to characterise man in his highest or intel-
lectual state ; and the fisher for salmon and trout
with the fly, employs not only machinery to assist
his physical powTers, but applies sagacity to con-
quer difficulties ; and the pleasure derived from
ingenious resources and devices, as well as from
active pursuit, belongs to this amusement. How
delightful in the early spring, after the dull
and tedious time of winter, when the frosts disap-
pear and the sunshine warms the earth and waters,
to wander forth by some clear stream."

To this feeling, whether as fly-fishers, or more
general anglers, we most cordially respond, and
not the less so as it applies to the stream in ques-
tion, among other favorite resorts, for the circum-
stance of the necessity of wet feet. There are
sundry places where it is customary to enter
Marshpee Brook, either higher or lower, according
to circumstances. To stem the current and fish
upwards, is out of the question, and never practised,
neither should we recommend ever " tracing up the
brooks," though unimpeded by trees, if it were for
no other reason than the derangement of the line,
25

386 TROUT AND ANGLING.

which constantly occurs by its flowing towards
you ; an inconvenience which never happens
while descending. In this brook, however, the
agitation of the waters in ascending and thereby
disturbing the fish, would be a sufficient reason for
going with the current, its operation being such as
to guide the bait, and often by the minutest
aperture ; into those deep recesses whence the
monarch of the brook is drawn vi et armis, as
he struggles to recede into his dark haunt ; in
fact, as there is no sea-room to play a fish, the
tackle should be altogether of a stouter description
than that which is confined to the use of the artifi-
cial fly.

The rod for instance should be but eight or ten
feet long, with a very stiff top joint — a longer
rod cannot be used with convenience on account of
the trees. It must have a winch or reel attached,
and rings through which to pass the line of ten or
fifteen yards in length, and made of silk. The
hooks should be of rather a large size, and if
ganged on silk worm gut, so much the better.
A swivel will be required, and at least one large
shot of the size of B.

The angler should have a supply of all those
materials before recommended, to repair his loss-
es, which in this brook of all others, on account
of the large size of the fish, and more particularly

TROUT AND ANGLING. 387

the obstructions in its course, are so likely to oc-
cur. Let the rod be of what kind it will, there
should always be a spike in the butt, for a rod
should never be suffered to lay upon the ground
or fall into the water, particularly in a current,
which is sure to sag down the line and do such
mischief as a little pains might have prevented.
He should have his fish pannier at his back, and
never be without his landing net under the left
arm, for reasons before stated. A clearing ring
is also often required in a brook like this. The
meshes of the net may be either small or large, as
the minnow, though always a good bait, is not
used in this stream. The practice is to procure a
fresh herring, and after having scaled it, make
three longitudinal cuts on each side, and then trans-
verse cuts, so as to reduce the whole shiny part of
the herring to square bits about double the size of
dice. To keep this bait in a convenient situa-
tion for use, either a small basket attached to the
pannier, or a tin box, with air holes in the top, is
necessary.

We have mentioned a reel as essential, though it
is not for the usual purpose of holding a long line to
play and drown the fish, as in more open waters ;
but for the purpose of governing the length of the
line with greater convenience, as it becomes often
necessary, in order to insinuate the bait under the

388 TROUT AND ANGLING.

bushes, or guide it near some frothy hummock, to
leave but one or two feet beyond the end of the
rod. In such places, sometimes not larger than a
hat, to all appearance, but often extending under
the banks of the stream to the length of the rod,
the trout on coming from the salt water take up
their abode, and also disperse themselves, under
every log, stone, bank or bush, calculated to afford
them cover. It is a peculiar kind of fishing, and
requires both caution and patience.

The angler should descend the stream so mod-
erately as not to rile the water more than possible,
and stand a moment before coming to a favorite
bend or bank, for the cloud to pass off and the wa-
ter to become quiet, before he casts his bait into
the tempting whirl. On striking, that is, hooking
the fish, time should be given to gorge the bait a
little, neither should it be done with violence for
fear of either breaking the rod, or jerking the
line and hook into a tree over head, which, of all
things is a difficulty most apt to try one's patience
in this brook. To guard against this latter incon-
venience, it is best to have a hook, made to screw
into the rod of the landing net, for the purpose of
drawing down a limb that may be out of reach, in
order to disengage the line.

There are a small species of trout in this stream
which are what we call natives, and do not visit the

TROUT AND ANGLING. 389

lower parts of the river ; they are easily distinguish-
ed from the sea-trout by their yellow sides, scarlet
bellies and red fins. The latter however not only re-
tain their silvery appearance, but grow brown on the
back and black on the head, and in the mouth, ac-
cording to the length of time they have been in the
fresh water. It is said that they come up with the
herrings, but the number taken by the herring fishers
in their hand nets is so few, as to establish the fact,
not only that they run in the night, but of their
continuing to ascend from the bay or mouth of the
river, long after the herrings have passed into the
Wakeby pond. Their bright, fresh run appear-
ance as well as their large size and numbers, may
be mentioned in further confirmation of their run-
ning more or less all summer lono-. For though
the fishing may be tolerable by the middle of May,
the greatest show of fish has always been taken in
the middle of summer. At this time herring
bait of course is not to be had, minnows, if possi-
ble, or worms, are then substituted. The largest
sea-trout in the State, have been taken in this
brook ; we believe nearly up to five pounds ; two
and three being by no means uncommon. But
we would repeat again that the average size is
much smaller than is generally admitted, and we
should sooner call it half a pound than two pounds,
as it has been erroneously stated ; indeed we

390 TROUT AND ANGLING.

should go farther, and call the average much less
even in the best day's fishing, if every trout, great
and small is " basketed," for it all depends upon
the number of those that are rejected and returned
to the stream.

This is one of the brooks that does not suffer by
a mill, that which is upon it, but now in decay,
being so near the outlet from the pond as to be no
impediment to the course of the fish towards their
cold-spring haunts, neither do they incline to pen-
etrate into the still and warmer waters of the pond ;
but prefer invariably to spawn in the gravelly shal-
lows of the running water, for which it is so re-
markably adapted. In fact, to all frequenters of
the Cape, it has been for generations, renowned
for the purity and coolness of the waters, the abun-
dance of shelters, the size and plenty offish, and
indeed for every quality that constitutes a most
perfect trout-stream, with the single exception of
its being, from its wild state, unfavorable to the use
of the artificial fly.

Since we have mentioned worms as a bait, and
not remembering to have seen any direction for
the process of what is called scouring, it may not
be amiss to introduce it here ; for if they are used
at all, they are much improved by the operation,
both as it respects their being cleaner and more
lively.

TROUT AND ANGLING. 391

First, get some clean meadow moss ; wash it and
wring it nearly dry, then fill a vessel of the shape
of a gallon measure. Let some common earth
worms be dug, of a middle size, enough to fill half
a pint ; put the worms as fast as dug into a basin
of clean water ; take all that are alive and not
broken, of a suitable size, and put them in a heap
upon the top of the moss, into which on the fol-
lowing day, they will be found to have buried
themselves, leaving the earth with which they
were filled, upon the surface. The moss and
worms must then be taken out, both washed sep-
arately, the broken worms picked out, and the
living ones placed as before. This, if repeated
two or three times will be sufficient, and will ren-
der them bright, clean and lively, in which state
they may be kept, occasionally sprinkling the moss
with a little milk, for many days.

As it respects the sea-trout, we have confined
our remarks thus far to a few particular places, but
it is proper to state that though the last mentioned
water is the main resort of visiters to Sandwich,
whence it is distant about ten miles ; that town is
the most remarkable for its abundance of this fine
fish of any other in the State ; so much so, that it
was for years frequented not only by those who
delight in the pursuit of angling, but also by those
who set quite as much value upon them as one of

392 TROUT AND ANGLING.

the greatest delicacies of the table. It was there
they were once taken in great numbers and eaten
in the highest perfection. It was there that the
hot air of the city was exchanged for the pure and
piny fragrance of the Cape. It was there the com-
forts of a public house were once realized to the
heart's content. But alas ! the glory of Sandwich
has departed, and " Fessenden's" exists no longer,
except in the remembrance of those who have en-
joyed its luxuries and the kind attentions of its re-
spected host.

Besides this lamentable change from what was
once justly considered the best house in the coun-
try, to its opposite extreme ; the corrupting influ-
ence of a foreign population has proved, in this in-
stance, the usual scourge of a village, so that now it
may be said, Sandwich fuit} and even " John," the
guide of the young angler, has seen his best days !
Deep as our regret may be for this deterioration,
occasioned less by the diminution of the fish than
the substitution of a low tavern, we do not say grog-
shop, for a public house, which from its superior
excellence under its former landlord, was of itself
sufficient to give character and celebrity to a vil-
lage ; we have yet the consolation left us of chang-
ing our head-quarters to that beautiful oasis in
the desert of pines, called Cotuit. This charming
settlement, which to its honor be it said, was nev-

TROUT AND ANGLING. 393

er permitted to be cursed with a " bar-room," so
called, is now without a public house. We there-
fore refrain from saying anything in its commen-
dation, as a starting point of the angler ; except that
we are among the favored few who are still per-
mitted by our obliging friend, Ezra Crocker, Esq.
though having taken down his sign, to make his
house our home.*

We mention this place as by far the most con-
venient location, either for early or late fishing, to
say nothing of its various other charms as a sum-
mer resort ; yet all the' places, to which we have
alluded, may be visited with great convenience
from Sandwich, requiring only a little more time
in going from place to place. For whether you
reside at one or the other, your excursions will de-
pend upon the season of the year. If early in the
spring before the sea-trout have begun to run,
they will be to the narrows of Popponesset bay, to

* As a proof of the salubrity of the village of Cotuit, as well
as the primitive temperance of its occupants, it may be re-
marked, that for the space of 20 years, a physician has not
been called to the family of Mr Crocker, with one exception,
and that was to a child, now a blooming young lady, who was
on a visit to the family. The physician being from home
however, and the patient mending, his services even in this
solitary instance were finally dispensed with. The father and
mother of Mr Cro;ker died at the advanced age of 80. Their
sons and descendants, together with Mr Hawley and the
Rev. Mr Fisk, are the principal occupants of the village.

394 TROUT AND ANGLING.

Waquoit bay, to the lower waters of Marshpee
river, and to Monument river, &c. ; but if later in
the spring, and in the early summer, though
Marshpee brook will be the great dependence,
the various other places where the sea-trout are
found are almost innumerable ; for there is not a
rivulet that flows from the springy banks of the
upland into the creeks of the salt marsh, but con-
tains more or less. Among the most celebrated,
however, are the two tide rivers in Sandwich, call-
ed Scusset, and Scorton, to the former of which,
once without its equal, we1 may again apply the
word fuit, for it has now suffered from the usual
effects of a mill. As to the smaller streams, that
which crosses the Barnstable road and enters the salt
meadows, about four miles from Sandwich, near the
Quaker Meeting-house, has, from our own expe-
rience, sometimes yielded great results ; in fact,
it may be said that the whole country is full of
trout, and not confined, though peculiar to this
town, for they abound in the neighboring towns
of Falmouth, Barnstable, Wareham, Plymouth,
etc., and to come nearer home, Marshfield, of
which last, by the way, out of regard to the tena-
cious notions of such friends as view the ground
their own by a sort of prescriptive right, but for
which we can feel no sympathy, we forbear to
make that particular mention which it justly
merits.

TROUT AND ANGLING. 395

Having thus considered the three principal va-
rieties, viz : the natural pond or lake-trout, the
river or artificial pond-trout, and the sea-trout, both
in salt and fresh water, as connected with the art
of angling, and with the exception of the first de-
scription, as applied to the state of Massachusetts,
the few remarks with which we conclude, will be
of a more miscellaneous character, and are such
as have been overlooked in our progress thus
far.

The trout being a very timid fish, seldom rise
or take the bait, either when seeing or seen, it is
therefore necessary to keep out of sight as much
as possible. Indeed it is necessary that the angler
should steal upon them with the cunning of a fox ;
and we have a friend in our mind whose great suc-
cess is founded upon his observance of this rule.
He uses the bait only, but always keeps at a re-
spectful distance from the water.

The fly-fisher, if he has learnt the art of throw-
ing the fly, may proceed with less caution ; his
greatest delight is to overcome distance by the
length of line, rather than by the length of the rod.
Lines are generally made of an equal size from
one end to the other, but a better way is to make
them like a whip-lash, that is, larger in the mid-
dle than at the extremities, for this gives an im-
petus in casting the fly. The best rods will be

396 TROUT AND ANGLING.

found to have a small piece of wire moulded on
the joints where they unite ; this is intended to tie
them together by a silk thread, to prevent the
awkward predicament of throwing rod and all into
the water, one of the miseries of anglers, and a
thing that often happens, unless so prevented.

Since we are upon nice points, though we hope
not more nice than wise, we will observe still fur-
ther, that the silk thread should be waxed with
bees' wax, and not with shoemaker's, that it
may be unwound with greater convenience, this
being the only use in all the apparatus, to which
the former is put in preference to the latter. Shoe-
maker's wax is absolutely essential, both as hold-
ing the work together and resisting the action of
the water. The silk thread should be left hang-
ing upon the joints ready for use, which if it is a
three-joint rod, as recommended, will require but
two wooldings, and gives very little trouble.
Before putting a rod together, the end of one joint
(without a brass ferrule, as advised,) which goes in-
to the ferrule or socket of the other, should have a
little hard grease applied to it, to prevent its swell-
ing and adhering, so that it cannot be taken apart ;
oil will not do. If, however, on account of rain,
or falling into the water, it should stick fast, which
often happens, it should not be forced, but the
brass held in the flame of a candle, when by

TROUT AND ANGLING. 397

the expansion of the socket, it will soon cease to
bind.

In bait-fishing, on feeling a fish, do not jerk the
bait out of his mouth, or give him a toss over your
head into the interior, but instantly drop the end
of the rod a little, then raise it with a brisk motion ;
this is striking with a better chance of hooking ef-
fectually, the bait being more or less gorged.
There are, however, two objections to this prac-
tice, effectual as it is, in which fly-fishing has great-
ly the advantage, one is that of giving pain to the
fish, allowing it has feeling — and another is the
difficulty of disengaging the hook, when deeply
fixed in the throat. Should this be the case, al-
ways withdraw the hook first through the gills for-
cibly, with the thumb and finger of the left hand,
then placing the fore-finger of the right hand upon
the point while there, bring it out of the mouth.
Observing this rule, the instrument called the dis-
gorger will be unnecessary, for the hand that holds
the line, and the finger shielding the point, an-
swer a better purpose. With the artificial fly,
however, the affair of striking a fish is reversed, the
eye must be constantly directed to the extremity
of the line, and the fish struck the instant it breaks
water. Quickness of sight is absolutely necessary
to success in fly-fishing, and those who do not pos-
sess it, and are, besides, constitutionally clumsy,

398 TROUT AND ANGLING.

had better give it up in despair. It is a very con-
venient way to hook into the hat, that is, by the
point of the hook of the fly, and a pin in the other
end of the snood, such flies as may chance to be
wanted, to (he amount of half a dozen, or more.
A three-joint rod, such as we have described for
fly-fishing, should have a spare middle and a spare
end-joint, which will be much the same as two
rods, as the butt seldom or never breaks ; it will
then consist of five pieces. A bright sun is always
unfavorable to fishing, and if calm at the same
time, still more so, but a bright sun with a good
breeze is better than a cloudy calm. The glassy
surface of the water must be broken that objects
may appear indistinct to the fish ; for this reason a
shower, particularly in its commencement, is very
favorable, but if on the contrary it has continued
so long and with such violence as to render the
water turbid, and to gorge the fish with feed wash-
ed into it from the shores, such a time is unfavora-
ble, both for the bait and the fly. Unpleasant as
it is to the angler, he should fish with his face to
the sun, particularly in a calm time, lest the sha-
dow of his person be cast into the water ; this is
not so material if there is a breeze.

To conclude ; there exists among the fraternity,
not only that kindliness of feeling towards each
other which usually accompanies a kindred taste

TROUT AND ANGLING. 399

in all pursuits, yet more particularly observa-
ble in that of the contemplative angler ; but
even a holier feeling often takes possession of his
thoughts ; and how can it be otherwise ? — Once
having felt, he never can "renounce the boundless
joys that nature to its votary yields." He is
cheered by the radiance of the rising sun ; he
breathes the balmy air of morning — soothed by
the humming stillness which prevails at noon ; the
feathered songsters greet his ear, mixed with
the brawling brook, " that down the distant rocks
hoarse-murmuring falls. " — He contemplates with
wonder all the secrets of the insect tribe ; he
hears, he feels, he sees that nothing is made in
vain ; he looks " from nature up to nature's God."

63

Errata.

Page 29, eight h line from bottom, for asseous, read osseous.

" " last line, for (esophagus, read oesophagi.

" 37, in reference marked C, for oracle, read auricle.

M 46, fourth line from top, for candal, read caudal.

" 49, third line from bottom, for sclerotic, read sclerotica.

" 57, fifth line from top, lor winch to, read which by.

" 59, sixth " " " oviperous, read oviparous,

" " " " " " condropterygii, read chondropterygii.

" " seventh c* is viviperous, read viviparous.

{< " tenth line from bottom, for andromous, read anadromous.

" 60, ninth " " for expregnate, read impregnate.

«' 63, tenth c< " for oviperous, read oviparous.

" 68, third line from top, for Branchiostagous, read Branchiostagious.

" 79, eighth " " Vedious, read Vedius.

«« " tenth line from bottom, for lest, read less.

•' 80, in some of the impressions for Celachii, read Selachii.

cc " ninth line from bottom, for ckein de mer, read chien de mer.

" " tenth " " for Scytliam, read Scyllium.

« 124, first line top, for Dr Yates, read Dr Yale.

'* 145, ninth line from top, for Block, read Bloch.

" 168, fourteen lines from bottom, do. do.

" 173, twelve " " '« for he, read it.

«' 176, two " " " for genera, read general.

" 179, eighth " <l " for hirando, read hirundo.

" 184, three lines from top, for loche, read loach.

« 187, two " " " do. do.

" 207, five lines from bottom, for pl.uinosus, read pruinosus.

" 208, sixth line from top, do. do.

" 226, twelfth k4 for auguilliform, read anguilliform.
Owing to a mistake of the compositor, in the whole article on An-
guilla, the word is mis-spelt Auguilla.

"' 235, last line before note, for Idua, read Idria.

" 237, first line from top, do. do.

" 264, eleven lines from top, for ccecums, read cceca.

" 271, three '• " for littoral, read litteral.

" 304, last line from bottom, for Slates, read State.

" 306, head of page, for Coinberoides, read Scomberoides.

" 307, sixth line from bottom, for nest, read net.

71 480X C 70 l**t

Date Due