station, and the refusal of all the wood on the coast at his arrival. As fast as the masters arrive, they unrig all their vessels, leaving nothing but the shrouds to sustain the masts, and in the mean time the mates provide a tent on shore, covered with branches of trees, and sails over them, with a scaffold of great trunks of pines, twelve, fifteen, sixteen, and often twenty feet high, commonly from forty to sixty feet long, and about one third as much in breadth. While the scaffold is preparing, the crew are fishing, and as fast as they catch they bring their fish ashore; open and salt them upon moveable benches; but the main salting is performed on the scaffold. When the fish have taken salt, they wash and hang them to drain on rails; when drained, they are laid on kinds of stages, which are small pieces of wood laid across, and covered with branches of trees, having the leaves stripped off for the passage of the air. On these stages they are disposed, a fish thick, head against tail, with the back uppermost, and are turned carefully four times every twenty-four hours. When they begin to dry, they are laid in heaps ten or twelve thick, in order to retain their warmth; and every day the heaps are enlarged, till they become double their first bulk; then two heaps are joined together, which they turn every day as before; lastly, they are salted again, beginning with those first salted, and being laid in huge piles, they remain in that situation till they are carried on board the ships, where they are laid on the branches of trees disposed for that purpose, upon the ballast, and round the ship, with mats to prevent their contracting any moisture.

There are four kinds of commodities drawn from cod, viz. the zounds, the tongues, the roes, and the oil extracted from the liver. The first is salted at the fishery, together with the fish, and put up in barrels from 6 to 700 pounds. The tongues are done in like manner, and brought in barrels from 4 to 500 pounds. The roes are also salted in barrels, and serve to cast into the sea to draw fish together, and particularly pilchards. The oil comes in barrels, from 400 to 520 pounds, and is used in dressing leather. The Scots catch a small kind of cod on the coast of Buchan, and all along the Murray Firth on both sides; as also in the Firth of Forth, Clyde, &c. which is much esteemed. They salt and dry them in the sun upon rocks, and sometimes in the chimney. They also cure skait, and

other smaller fish in the same manner, but most of these are for home consumption.

FISHERY, coral. See CORAL fishery.

FISHERY, herring. Herrings are chiefly found in the North Sea. They are a fish of passage, and commonly go in shoals, being very fond of following fire or light, and in their passage they resemble a kind of lightning. About the beginning of June, an incredible shoal of herrings, probably much larger than the land of Great Britain and Ireland, come from the north on the surface of the sea: their approach is known by the hovering of sea fowl in expectation of prey, and by the smoothness of the water; but where they breed, or what particular place they come from, cannot be easily discovered. As this great shoal passes between the shores of Greenland and the North Cape, it is probably confined, and as it reaches the extremities of Great Britain, is necessarily divided into two parts. For we find one part of the herrings steering west, or south-west, and leaving the islands of Shetland and Orkney to the left, pass on towards Ireland, where, being interrupted a second time, some keeping the shore of Britain, pass away south, down St. George's channel; while the other part, edging off to the south-west, coast the western ocean, till they reach the south shore of Ireland, and then steering south-east, join the rest in St. George's channel. The other part of the first division made in the north, parting a little to the east and south-east, pass by Shetland, and then make the point of Buchan-ness, and the coast of Aberdeen, filling as they go all the bays, firths, creeks, &c. with their innumerable multitudes. Hence they proceed forward, pass by Dunbar, and rounding the high shores of St. Abbe's Head, and Berwick, are seen again off Scarborough; and even then not diminished in bulk, till they come to YarmouthRoads, and from thence to the mouth of the Thames, after which, passing down the British channel, they seem to be lost in the Western Ocean.

The vast advantage of this fishery to our nation is very obvious, when we consider that though herrings are found upon the shores of North America, they are never seen there in such quantities as with us, and that they are not to be met with in considerable numbers in any of the southern kingdoms of Europe, as Spain, Portugal, or the southern parts of France; on the side of the ocean, or in the Mediterranean, or on the coast of Africa, There are two seasons

for fishing herring, the first from June to the end of August, and the second in autumn, when the fogs become very favourable for this kind of fishing. The Dutch begin their herring-fishing on the 24th of June, and employ no less than 2000 vessels therein, called busses, being between 45 and 60 tons burden, and carrying three or four small cannon. They never stir out of port without a convoy, unless there be enough together to make about 18 or 20 cannon among them, in which case they are allowed to go in company.

Before they go out, they make a verbal agreement, which has the same force as if it were in writing. The regulations of the admiralty of Holland are partly followed by the French, and other nations, and partly improved and augment ed with new ones, as, that no fisher shall cast his net within a hundred fathoms of another boat: that while the nets are cast, a light shall be kept on the hind part of the vessel: that when a boat is by any accident obliged to leave off fishing, the light shall be cast into the sea that when the greater part of a fleet leaves off fishing, and casts anchor, the rest shall do the same, &c. By the late act of parliament in Great Britain, the regulations are, that every vessel entitled to the bounty, must carry twelve Winchester bushels of salt in new barrels, for every last of fish such vessel is capable of holding; and as many more new barrels as such vessels can carry; and two fleets of tanned nets, that is, a vessel of seventy tons shall carry one fleet of 50 nets, each net to be 30 yards full upon its rope, and seven fathoms deep; and so in proportion for greater or smaller vessels; and be provided with one other fleet of fifty like nets, on board a tender, or left on shore in a proper place for the use of the said vessel, &c.

There is nothing particular in the manner - of fishing. The nets wherein the fish are drawn should regularly have their meshes an inch square to let all the lesser fry go through.

Curing and preparing herring. The commerce of herring, both white or pickled, and red, is very considerable. The white Dutch herrings are the most esteemed, be ing distinguished into four sorts, according to their sizes; and the best are those that are fat, fleshy, firm, and white, salted the same day they are taken with good salt, and well barrelled. The British herrings are little inferior, if not equal to the Dutch; for in spite of all their endeavours to conceal the secret, their method of curing, lasting,

or casking the herrings, has been discovered, and is as follows. After they have hauled in their nets, which they drag in the sterns of their vessels backwards and forwards in traversing the coast, they throw them upon the ship's deck, which is cleared of every thing for that purpose; the crew is separated into sundry divisions, and each division has a peculiar task: one part opens and guts the herrings, leaving the melts and roes: another cures and salts them, by lining or rubbing their inside with salt: the next packs them, and between each row and division they sprinkle handfuls of salt: lastly, the cooper puts the finishing hand to all by heading the casks very tight, and stowing them in the hold. It is customary with us to wash the herring in fresh water, and steep them 12 or 15 hours in a strong brine before we proceed to barrel them.

Red herrings must lie 24 hours in the brine, in as much as they are to take all their salt there, and when they are taken out, they are spitted, that is, strung by the head on little wooden spits, and then hung in a chimney made for that purpose. After which a fire of brushwood, which yields a deal of smoke, but no flame, being made under them, they remain there till sufficiently smoked and dried, and are afterwards barrelled up for keeping.

FISHERY, mackrel. The mackrel are found in large shoals in the ocean, but especially on the French and English coasts. They enter the English channel in April, and proceeding as the summer advances, about June they are on the coasts of Cornwall, Sussex, Normandy, Picardy, &c.where the fishery is most considerable. They are taken either with a line or nets: the latter is preferable, and is usually performed in the night time. They are pickled two ways, first by opening and gutting them, and cramming their bellies as hard as pos sible with salt, by means of a stick, and then laying them in rows at the bottom of the vessel, strewing salt between each layer. The second way is putting them directly into tubs full of brine, made of salt and fresh water, and leaving them to steep till they have taken salt enough to keep. After this, they are barrelled up and pressed close down.

FISHERY, pearl. See PEARL fishery.

FISHERY, pilchard. The chief pilchard fisheries are along the coasts of Dalmatia, on the coast of Bretagne, and along the coasts of Cornwall and Devonshire. That of Dalmatia is very plentiful: that on the

coasts of Bretagne employs annually about 300 ships. The pilchards caught on our coasts, though bigger, are not so much va Ined as those on the coasts of France, owing principally to their not being so thoroughly cured. They naturally follow the light, which contributes much to the facility of the fishery: the season is from June to September. On the coasts of France they make use of the roes of the cod-fish, as a bait, which thrown into the sea, makes them rise from the bottom, and run into the nets: on our coasts there are persons posted ashore, who spying by the colour of the water where the shoals are, make signs to the boats to go among them to cast their nets. When taken, they are brought on shore to a warehouse, where they are laid up in broad piles, supported with backs and sides, and as they are piled they salt them with bay salt, in which lying to soak 20 or 30 days, they run out a deal of blood, with dirty pickle and bittern: then they wash them clean in sca-water; and when dry, barrel and press them hard down to squeeze out the oil, which issues out at a hole in the bottom of the cask. The Cornish men observe of the pilchard, that it is the least fish in size, most in number, and greatest for gain, of any they take out of the

sea.

FISHERY, salmon. The chief salmon fisheries in Europe are in England, Scotland, and Ireland, in the rivers and sea-coasts adjoining to the river mouths. Those most distinguished for salmon in Scotland, are the river Tweed, the Clyde, the Tay, the Dee, the Don, the Spey, the Ness, the Bewley, &c. in most of which it is very common about the height of summer, especially if the weather happen to be very hot, to catch four or five score of salmon at a draught. The chief rivers in England for salmon are the Tyne, the Trent, the Severn, and the Thames. The fishing usually begins about January, and in Scotland, they are obliged to give over about the 15th of August, because, as it is then supposed the fish come up to spawn, it would be quite depopulating the rivers to continue fishing any longer. It is performed with nets, and sometimes with a kind of locks or wears made on purpose, which in certain places have iron or wooden grates so disposed, in an angle, that being impelled by any force in a contrary direction to the course of the river, they may give way and open a little at the point of contact, and immediately shut again, closing the angle. The salmon,

therefore, coming up into the rivers, are admitted into these grates, which open, and suffer them to pass through, but shut again, and prevent their return. Salmon are also caught with a spear, which they dart into him when they see him swimming near the surface of the water. It is customary likewise to catch them with a candle and lanthorn, or wisp of straw set on fire; for the fish naturally following the light, are struck with the spear, or taken in a net spread for that purpose, and lifted with a sudden jerk from the bottom. We make no mention of the method of catching salmon with a line or hook, because it is much the same with trout fishing.

Curing salmon. When the salmon are taken, they open them along the back, take out the guts and gills, and cut out the greatest part of the bones, endeavouring to make the inside as smooth as possible, then salt the fish in large tubs for the purpose, where they lie a considerable time soaking in brine, and about October they are packed close up in barrels, and sent to London, or exported up the Mediterranean. They have also in Scotland a great deal of salmon salted in the common way, which after soaking in brine a competent time, is well pressed, and then dried in smoke: this is called kipper, and is chiefly made for home consumption, and if properly cured and prepared, is reckoned very delicious.

FISHERY, sturgeon. The greatest sturgeon fishery is in the mouth of the Volga, on the Caspian Sea, where the Muscovites employ a great number of hands, and catch them in a kind of inclosure formed by huge stakes, representing the letter Z, repeated several times. These fisheries are open on the side next the sea, and close on the other, by which means the fish ascending in the season up the river are embarrassed in these narrow angular retreats, and thus are easily killed with a harping-iron. Sturgeons, when fresh, eat deliciously; and in order to make them keep they are salted or pickled in large pieces, and put up in cags from thirty to fifty pounds. But the great object of this fishery is the roe, of which the Muscovites are extremely fond, and of which is made the cavear or kavia, so much esteemed by the Italians. See CAVEAR.

FISHERY, whale. Whales are chiefly caught in the North Sea: the largest sort are found about Greenland, or Spitzbergen. At the first discovery of this country, whales not being used to be disturbed, frequently

came into the very bays, and were accordingly killed almost close to the shore, so that the blubber being cut off was immediately boiled into oil on the spot. The ships, in those times, took in nothing but the pure oil and the fins, and all the business was executed in the country, by which means, a ship could bring home the product of many more whales than she can accord ing to the present method of conducting this trade. The fishery also was then so plentiful, that they were obliged sometimes to send other ships to fetch off the oil they had made, the quantity being more than the fishing ships could bring away. But time and change of circumstances have shifted the situation of this trade. The ships coming in such numbers from Holland, Denmark, Hamburgh, and other northern countries, all intruders upon the English, who were the first discoverers of Greenland, disturbed the whales, and gradually, as other fish often do, forsaking the place, were not to be killed so near the shore as before; but are now found, and have been so ever since, in the openings and spaces among the ice, where they have deep water, and where they go sometimes a great many leagues from the shore.

The whale fishery begins in May, and continues all June and July; but whether the ships have good or bad success they must come away and get clear of the ice by the end of August; so that in the month of September, at farthest, they may be expect ed home; but a ship that meets with a fortunate and early fishery in May, may return in June or July.

The manner of taking whales at present is as follows: as soon as the fishermen hear the whale blow, they cry out fall! fall! and every ship gets out its long-boat, in each of which there are six or seven men; they row till they come pretty near the whale, then the harpooner strikes it with the harpoon. This requires great dexterity, for through the bone of his head there is no striking, but near his spout there is a soft piece of flesh, into which the iron sinks with ease. As soon as he is struck they take care to give him rope enough, otherwise when he goes down, as he frequently does, he would inevitably sink the boat this rope he draws with such violence, that, if it were not well watered, it would by its friction against the sides of the boat be soon set on fire. The line fastened to the harpoon is six or seven fathoms long, and is -called the fore-runner: it is made of the

finest and softest hemp that it may slip the easier to this they join a heap of lines of 90 or 100 fathoms each, and when there are not enough in one long boat they borrow from another. The man at the helm observes which way the rope goes, and steers the boat accordingly, that it may run exactly out before; for the whale runs away with the line with so much rapidity that he would overset the boat if it were not kept straight. When the whale is struck, the other long boats row before and observe which way the line stands, and sometimes pull it; if they feel it stiff it is a sign the whale still pulls in strength, but if it hangs loose and the boat lies equally high before and behind upon the water they pull it in gently, but take care to coil it so that the whale may have it again easily if he recovers strength: they take care, however, not to give him too much line, because he sometimes entangles it about a rock and pulls out the harpoon. The fat whales do not sink as soon as dead, but the lean ones do, and come up some days afterwards. As long as they see whales they lose no time in cutting up what they have taken, but keep fishing for others: when they see no more, or have taken enough, they begin with taking off the fat and whiskers in the following manner: the whale being lashed along side, they lay it on one side and put two ropes, one at the head and the other in the place of the tail, which, together with the fins, is struck off as soon as he is taken, to keep those extremities above water. On the off side of the whale are two boats to receive the pieces of fat, utensils, and men, that might otherwise fall into the water on that side. These precautions being taken, three or four men, with irons at their feet to prevent slipping, get on the whale, and begin to cut out pieces of about three feet thick and eight long, which are hauled up at the capstan or windlass. When the fat is all got off they cut off the whiskers of the upper jaw with an axe. Before, they cut they are all lashed to keep them firm, which also facilitates the cutting, and prevents them from falling into the sea; when on board, five or six of them are bundled together and properly stowed, and after all is got off the carcase is turned adrift and devoured by the bears, who are very fond of it. In proportion as the large pieces of fat are cut off, the rest of the crew are employed in slicing them smaller, and picking out all the lean. When this is prepared they stow it under the deck, where it lies

till the fat of all the whales is on board; then cutting it still smaller they put it up in tubs in the hold, cramming them very full and close. Nothing now remains but to sail homewards, where the fat is to be boiled and melted down into train oil.

It were in vain to speak in this place of the advantages that may be derived to Great Britain from the whale fishery. We shall only remark that the legislature thinks that trade of so great importance as to grant a very considerable bounty for the encouragement of it; for every British vessel of 200 tons or upwards, bound to the Greenland Seas on the whale fishery, if found to be duly qualified according to the act, obtains a license from the commissioners of the customs to proceed on such voyage: and on the ship's return, the master and mate making oath that they proceeded on such voyage and no other, and used all their endeavours to take whales, &c. and that all the whale-fins, blubber, oil, &c. imported to their ship, were taken by their crew in those seas, there shall be allowed 40s. for every ton according to the admeasurement of the ship.

Besides these fisheries, there are several others both on the coasts of Great Britain and in the North Seas, which although not much the subject of merchandize, nevertheless employ great numbers both of ships and men; as, 1. The oyster fishing at Colchester, Feversham, the Isle of Wight, in the Swales of the Medway, and in all the creeks between Southampton and Chichester, from whence they are carried to be fed in pits about Wevenhoe and other places. See OYSTER.

2. The lobster fishing all along the British channel, the firth of Edinburgh, on the coast of Northumberland, and on the coast of Norway, from whence great quantities are brought to London. And, lastly, the fishing of the pot-fish, fin-fish, sea-unicorn, sea-horse, and the seal, or dog-tish, all which are found in the same seas with the whales, and yield blubber in a certain degree; besides, the horn of the unicorn is as estimable as ivory, and the skins of the seals are particularly useful to trunk-makers.

FISHING, in general, the art of catching fish, whether by means of nets, or of spears, lines, rods, and hooks. See ANG

LING.

FISTULA, in the ancient music, an instrument of the wind kind, resembling our finte, or flageolet. See FLUTE.

FISTULA lachrymalis, a disease which attacks the great caruncle in the inward corner of the eye.

FISTULARIA, the tobacco-pipe fish, in natural history, a genus of fishes of the order Abdominales. Generic character: snout cylindrical; jaws distant from the eyes; gill membrane with seven rays; body tapering from the jaws to the tail. There are three species. F. tabacaria, or the slender fistularia, grows to the length of three feet, and is found on the coasts of Brazil, by the inhabitants of which it is eaten, though not particularly esteemed by them. It lives principally upon smaller fishes, insects, and worms. These it obtains with great ease, by means of a species of snout, which it introduces into clefts, and under stones,where they mostly abound. The two other species are natives of the Indian seas.

FITCHEE, in heraldry, a term applied to a cross, when the lower end of it is sharpened into a point.

FITS of easy reflection, &c. in optics. Sir Isaac Newton calls the successive disposition of a ray to be reflected through different thicknesses of a plate of air, or any other substance, the returns or fits of easy reflection, and the disposition of the same ray to be transmitted in the same manner through the intervening spaces, returns or fits of easy transmission. Thus, a ray of light is in a fit of easy reflection, when it falls on a plate of any kind of matter, whose thickness is one of the terms of the series 1, 3, 5, 7, &c. taking the smallest thickness capable of reflecting such ray for unit; and, in the same way, it is in one of its fits of easy transmission when the thickuess is one of the terms of the series 2, 4, 6, 8, &c. See OPTICS.

FIXED bodies are those which bear a considerable degree of heat without evaporating, or losing any of their weight.

FIXITY. The property by which bodies resist the action of heat, so as not to rise in vapour. It is the opposite to volatility. The fixity of bodies appears to be merely relative, and depends on the tem perature at which they assume the elastic state or form. Such bodies as assume this state at a low temperature will easily rise; whereas those which cannot be so dilated