Sprats are caught on the coasts of the Mediterranean, in such immense shoals, that at

e single haul of a large net, as many have sometimes been landed as would have filled between forty and fifty barrels. From the cir cumstance of these tish

SPRAT.

being caught near the island of Sardinia in great abundance, and being exported from that island, in barrels, to various parts of the

world, they have obtained, in several countries, the name of Sardine. Sprats are likewise found in the North Sea and the Baltic.

They usually frequent the deep parts of the sea; but in the autumn thy approach the smooth and sandy shores, for the purpose of de positing there their spawn.

THE SHAD.

Shads appear in the river Rhine in the month of March; in the

SILAD.

Severn and Thames, and Delaware, in April, May, and June; and in the Nile in December and January. As soon as they arrive, they deposit their spawn in places where the current is most rapid; and, some months afterwards, return to the sea.

They ascend the Rhine as far as Basil, where they are caught in nets, and osier baskets or traps. In order to attract them into the latter, the fishermen use a bait of peas, prepared in a certain way with myrrh this bait is put into a small bag, and suspended in the inside. When caught by means of lines, an earthworm is used for a bait.

It has been asserted that Shads delight in music, and that they are afraid of storms. They are so little tenacious of life, that, like the Herring, they always die as soon as they are taken out of the water.

When these fish are taken out of the sea, they are thin and illflavored; but the longer they continue in the rivers, the fatter and more eatable they become. In the Severn they are considered very delicate fish, especially in that part of the river which flows by Gloucester; here they are usually sold at a price higher than that of Salmon. The Thames Shad is esteemed a very coarse and insipid fish. In most countries the males are considered less delicate food than the females.

THE ANCHOVY.

Like the Herring and the Sprats, these fish leave the deeps of the open sea inorder to frequent the smooth and shallow places of the coasts, for the purpose of spawning. Between the months of December and March, immense numbers are caught on the shores of Provence, Brabant, and Catalonia: during June and July, in the English Channel and in the environs of Venice, Genoa, Rome, and Bayonne.

The fishermen generally light a fire on the shore, for the purpose of attracting the Anchovies, when they fish for them in the night. After the Anchovies are cleansed and their heads are cut off, they are cured in a certain way, and packed in small barrels for sale and expor tation. The ancient Greeks and Romans prepared from these fish a liquid, which they denominated garum, and which was highly esteemed by most of the epicures of that day.

Anchovies are occasionally found both in the North Sea and in the Baltic; but it is supposed that they are in much greater number in the Mediterranean, than in any other part of the world.

THE COMMON CARP.

899

OF THE CARP TRIBE.

THE Carp tribe, for the most part, inhabit fresh waters, where they feed on worms, insects, aquatic plants, fish, and clay or mould. Some of them are migratory. Most of the species, which are very numerous, are found only in the northern countries of Europe; and, consequently, were unknown to the ancient naturalists of Greece and Rome.

THE COMMON CARP.

In their general habits, these fish exhibit so great a degree of cunning, as sometimes to be called by the country people River-fox. When attempted to be taken by a net, they will often leap over it; or immerse themselves so deep in the mud, as to suffer the net to pass over without touching them. They are also very

COMMON CARP.

shy of taking a bait; but, during spawning-time, they are so intent on the business of depositing their ova, that they will suffer themselves to be handled by any one who attempts it. They breed three or four times in the year, but their first spawning is in the beginning of May.

Carp are found in the slow rivers and stagnant waters of Europe and Persia; and here principally in deep holes, under the roots of trees, hollow banks, or great beds of flags, &c. They do not often exceed four feet in length, and twenty pounds in weight; but Jovius mentions some, caught in the lake of Como, in Italy, that weighed two hundred pounds each; and others have been taken in the Dneister five feet in length.

From their quick growth and vast increase, these are considered as the most valuable of all fish for the stocking of ponds; and if the breeding and feeding of them were better understood, and more practised, than they are, the advantages resulting from them would be very great.

By being constantly fed, they may be rendered so familiar as always to come, for food, to the side of the pond where they are kept. Dr. Smith, speaking of the Prince of Condé's seat at Chantilly, says, "The most pleasing things about it were the immense shoals of very large Carp, silvered over with age, like silver fish, and perfectly tame; so that, when any passengers approached their watery habitation, they used to come to the shore in such numbers as to heave each other out of the water, begging for bread, of which a quantity was always kept at hand on purpose to feed them. They would even allow themselves to be handled."

Carp are very long-lived: the pond in the garden of Emanuel

College, Cambridge, contained a Carp that had been an inhabitant of it more than seventy years; and Gesner has mentioned an instance of one that was an hundred years old. They are also extremely tena. eious of life, and will live for a great length of time out of water.

THE TENCH.

Tench are partial to foul and weedy waters; and their haunts in

rivers are chiefly among weeds, and in places well shaded with rushes. These fish thrive best in standing waters, where they lie under weeds, near sluices and pond-heads. They are much more numerous in pools and pits than in rivers; but those that are caught in the latter, are far preferable for the table. They begin to spawn in June, and may be found spawning in some waters till September. The best season for them is from that time until the end of May.

TEXCH.

They do not often exceed four or five pounds in weight.

THE GUDGEON.

The food of the Gudgeon consists of aquatic plants, worms, the larvæ of water-insects, and the spawn of fish. They usually swim in small shoals, and are found in gentle streams, where the bed is of sand or gravel. If the bed of the stream be raked or stirred up, they eagerly collect round the spot, and are easily caught with lines baited with small earth-worms.

GUDGEON.

The flesh of the Gudgeon is white. of excellent flavor, and digestion.

easy of

THE CHUB.

The Chub is a handsome fish; but it is not in esteem for the table,

CHUB.

being very coarse, and, when out of season full of small, hairy bones. Its name is derived from the shape of its head; the French and Italians know it by a name synonymous with ours.

Its haunts are rivers, whose bottoms are of sand or clay, or which are bounded by clayey banks; in deep holes, under hollow banks,

shaded by trees or weeds. These fish often float on the surface, and are sometimes found in deep waters, where the currents are strong. In ponds fed by rivulets they grow to a great size. They seldom, however, exceed the weight of four or five pounds.

When the Chub seizes a bait, he bites so eagerly that his jaws are often heard to chop like those of a Dog. He, however, seldom breaks his hold, and, when once he is struck, is soon tired.

THE DACE.

The Dace is a gregarious and lively fish; and during summer is fond of playing near the surface of the water. It is generally found where the water is deep, and the stream is gentle, near the piles of bridges. It also frequents deep

DACE.

holes that are shaded by the leaves of the water-lily; and under the foam on the shallows of streams.

These fish seldom weigh more than a pound and a half; but they are exceedingly prolific.

THE ROACH.

This fish is found chiefly in deep, still rivers, where it is often seen in large shoals. In summer it frequents shallows near the tails of fords; or lies under banks among weeds, and shaded by trees or herbage, especially where the water is thick. As the winter approaches, these haunts are changed for deep and still waters.

ROACH.

The Roach is so silly a fish, that it has acquired the name of the Water-sheep, in contradistinction to the Carp, which from its subtlety is termed the River-fox. Sound as a Roach, is a proverb that appears but indifferently founded.

This is a handsome fish, either in the water or when immediately taken out of it. The flesh, although reckoned wholesome, is in little esteem, on account of the great quantity of bones. When Roach are in season, their scales are very smooth; but when they are out of season, these feel like the rough side of an oyster-shell. Their fins also are generally red when the animals are in perfection. These fish differ much in quality, according to the rivers in which they are caught. None are good that are kept in ponds. Roach feed on aquatic plants and vermes. Their usual weight is from half a pound to two pounds. Some, however, have been known to weigh as much as five pounds.