they may be taken up by pails full, and people even pick them
up with their hands.
; A hill of Herrings (fe they ^all a large fhoal'of thdnî) aêrofHnîg
to all the filhermens accounts, reaches from the bottom to the
furface of the water, which, in Jthe moft places thereabouts,,
is an hundred or two hundred fathoms deep, -.' They exterid alld
to a-confiderable circumference. • Were they all to be caught, the
greateft part would be loft j for it would be impoftible-to get
hatids^ tubs, jfelt> and other neceffaries for the^curififr of them.
Several hundred (hip-loads are lent every-year from Bergen alone,
to foreign parts, befi.de the great - quantity; tha(F î î fèôflTurned at
home by the peafants7whbrmaké them^hèirldaily provi®nn5 ’!thci?
they do but half lalt them : thefe are called foür' Hérrid^à',
which juft fuit their palate*. To all5this Ï may add, the incredible
number that is ufed by way of bait for other Filh ; for'Herrings
are a bait that almoft all Filh are fond bf-:; half a* "Herring
is üfuâlly hung to each hook at a tiriie. :
i I {hall now "give feme account of the vhriSuS'Wâfÿs of catching
Herrings in the lèverai feafons óf the year, and the drflerSSee
obferved between thofe -Herrings that are éauglffc af' thófè „ïbverft
times. The firft and largeft, but 'ri'ót the fatteft, are'‘-thpfëlhiff
generally appear on the coaft of Norway, ffom:^CEiifthias*’ to
Candlemas f . Thefe are called Stor-fild, i. e. ■ large Herrings, and
by other names exprefling their excellence. Thefe' pftdhyupon
feme particular lhallows near thé fhore, which are called Sji^,
* Though the Herring-fifhery has'tMsyèarj'y^'ÿ^fiSbtFeen neaf^lh gteat as ufu^Jj
yet in thefe j^ e Months, from Janpàiy i , t o ‘Qft>beç 16, there ’Kave:been' exported
from ÆeFgên^eli^eirthôufand and thirteen lafts and'by thé fenri-of th r e a t
be a'gféat many more.-
• "yjS ifele-afer Twelfth-day the common jjeople fiHo$k,iitoï,for the Wh,aje
from -theï3gH'cliffs^ which prognbfticates trie arrival of the Herrings. Tkeÿ 'calcoHte
the time by an old proverb :
- Sidft i Torre og forftvi Gio.
Skal Sitó.- Dg Hval Vaefe i tfiöt- ÜÜ
In Englifh :
. The latter end of Torre, or beginning, of Gio,
1 The Whale and the Herring muft be in the fea.
'This period, according to the common opinion, depends upon the change of the
moon : for .the firft new moon after Chriftmas is called Torre, and the next is .called
Gio : therefore they generally obferve the Chriftmas moon. The Spring Whales malce
their appearance firft, in great numbers,. and:are.feen ten or fourteen, and fometimes.
only three or four days before the great Whales, of which they are look’d iipon as the
harbingers or fore-runners. Thefe Spring Whales range themfelves in a line, and run
over all the fifh-grounds, as if they were intent.upon driving away other fmall Fillies,
that the coaft may be clear for the Herrings to difcharge their fpawn at the proper
feafon.
where the fëftîams^é'rÿ5-'yea# fjeH their Voe, and the males their
m®;4 If thé weathfï^,nappens*‘tb bë'very ftdrmy, and thefea to
dn thöfé^öüntfs, thèy arè
jilÖéit iS^eiriaîmfea ;-where they-ütè
dbligM» to; ft¥u#|fe.%Qth'ag&mft the boear^'âhd their enem/ihè
Whàlè; Who iricbmj^ibdëd by'the fuelling fàr#es.
*'Nor is1-' fh^^lêfÿ’orflthe1 Hetriiï|p*t'h,e *.pnl y bne - the 'country expe-
tifêfe titiSêsÿ* f&? Mliijflkfewïfe deprived -'of Igreat qmn-
'titled qfl Cbd,i: art# 6tB^t v¥£u£b1e« -Fifh^tHari ölherwifé 'Would
If5™“®? in"tö‘ptev ^ftpbri^thfek/pa wn of the Hefrihgs ; font às that
Bs toi be’ found Ipffjp théf1 k’eep
Inj‘tMej^aëaflCtiiîfe; .the ,'e’érânt-i^ people affepdbtef Wgether upon'
the'fhore bÿ^düfïmd^ wMler a’fg w f ’ nümber iput ..ofFJfevfefal
mifés-tè fëa^oiMbëlWée^ rocks] and-in fifhing
place thati-'are - ntékfefffoHhëir habitations;; At ’Mis" feafon1 ohè
o#«a’iiaaej upwarcfs->ofi or j.oo
jfimiiî^4)ôàe-li ly-Mg 'on 'théli fteîdh tfdrT whole mbnth or longer,
and:’ calling -fcteèîr ‘l a r g e •” which arè %b -ót‘ ■ long-^
They generally put' two pf thefe,nets together ; and tho’ there
are a gteafr’ -ffianf, perhaps or ijö'bn- one place, and pretty
Cldfe together, ^It;«fti ‘a'feW rhours,' they will be fo Wfed With
Hearingsj that 'flfèy^oiftètimes fink to the bottom, arid dre very
difficult .to *be'drawn up'a^ain. ' In each net they will^ ^often
catch which , hang PM . by their gilh
in thé : mèOfés 'lóf'fth ë fièt. t ; Towards; the Spring, -pr fim-ilen^
there Combs'a 'fmal lót forti ''which-’1 but people call Stra'dl^SM*
and Gaate^Sild? :''they %re likewife caught the fame way in thole
Mge fpread nets, which’‘-for this-ufe à’Iè made With fmallöc
Éiëfhê|i; dr they m. ' -which fp w M
they' D ë H ^ ^ /*T Ü ^ É ; :^ y{fix '^ '^ é -1èhè
©therj büt? thrlfWö in, aihd d ^ i^ d 5 ■ dût? gehera-lfy'5 PUB tyf’Tiih •
for thefe fmàller ,Mfeir|j^-'kd3afe ;vfe?pèaf the Apre, and allure
fome oL thé larger ^tS^befelfe^imferitiohed^-afeng with themj
which would not venture ip ■ Were 'it not for their company. j It
happens' fdmétiifiès ‘that the fiffierman takes 'kTufficient quantity
at *óhè fingle'-eaft-j'arid Utv is riot rare, that he ‘catches feveral
hundred cask^ and even more than he can difpofe of. This
fa£l I am goïhg to-feikte1 isfufpririmgj and what foreigners: will
hardly believe ; büt T myfélf am véfy well aflured of it, and the
whole city of Bergen can witnefs the fame ; namely, that with
one call of the net here in Sfendifiord, there were caught as many
Herrings .as filled.jqq (fome fay 150) jaggers, each jagger of
j[oo ton burthen, which iqakes 10,000 ton taken atone draught.