ening of butter and flour, 1 tablespoonful of curry-powder, pint of salt and cayenne to taste.

cream,

Mode.-Flake the fish, and fry it of a nice brown colour with the butter and onions; put this in a stewpan, add the stock and thickening, and simmer for 10 minutes. Stir the curry-powder into the cream; put it, with the seasoning, to the other ingredients; give one boil, and serve.

Time.-hour. Average cost, with fresh fish, 3s.

Seasonable from November to March.

Sufficient for 4 persons.

THE FOOD OF THE COD.-This chiefly consists of the smaller species of the scaly tribes, shell-fish, crabs, and worms. Their voracity is very great, and they will bite at any small body they see moved by the water, even stones and pebbles, which are frequently found in their stomachs. They sometimes attain a great size, but their usual weight is from 14 to 40 lbs.

COD A LA CREME.

238. INGREDIENTS.-1 large slice of cod, 1 oz. of butter, 1 chopped shalot, a little minced parsley, teacupful of white stock, pint of milk or cream, flour to thicken, cayenne and lemon-juice to taste, teaspoonful of powdered sugar.

Mode.-Boil the cod, and while hot, break it into flakes; put the butter, shalot, parsley, and stock into a stewpan, and let them boil for 5 minutes. Stir in sufficient flour to thicken, and pour to it the milk or cream. Simmer for 10 minutes, add the cayenne and sugar, and, when liked, a little lemon-juice. Put the fish in the sauce to warm gradually, but do not let it boil. Serve in a dish garnished with croûtons.

Time.-Rather more than hour. Average cost, with cream, 2s. Seasonable from November to March.

Sufficient for 3 persons.

Note. The remains of fish from the preceding day answer very well for this dish.

COD A LA BECHAMEL.

239. INGREDIENTS.-Any remains of cold cod, 4 tablespoonfuls of béchamel (see Sauces), 2 oz. butter; seasoning to taste of pepper and salt; fried bread, a few bread crumbs.

Mode.-Flake the cod carefully, leaving out all skin and bone; put the béchamel in a stewpan with the butter, and stir it over the fire till the latter is melted; add seasoning, put in the fish, and mix it well with the sauce. Make a border of fried bread round the dish, lay in the fish, sprinkle over with bread crumbs, and baste with

butter. Brown either before the fire or with a salamander, and garnish with toasted bread cut in fanciful shapes.

Time.-hour.

Average cost, exclusive of the fish, 6d.

THE HABITAT OF THE COD.-This fish is found only in the seas of the northern parts of the world, between the latitudes of 45° and 66°. Its great rendezvous are the sandbanks of Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, Cape Breton, and New England. These places are its favourite resorts; for there it is able to obtain great quantities of worms, a food peculiarly grateful to it. Another cause of its attachment to these places has been said to be on account of the vicinity to the Polar seas, where it returns to spawn. Few are taken north of Iceland, and the shoals never reach so far south as the Straits of Gibraltar. Many are taken on the coasts of Norway, in the Baltic, and off the Orkneys, which, prior to the discovery of Newfoundland, formed one of the principal fisheries. The London market is supplied by those taken between the Dogger Bank, the Well Bank, and Cromer, on the east coast of England.

COD A LA MAITRE D'HOTEL.

240. INGREDIENTS.-2 slices of cod, lb. of butter, a little chopped shalot and parsley; pepper to taste, teaspoonful of grated nutmeg, or rather less, when the flavour is not liked; the juice of lemon. Mode.-Boil the cod, and either leave it whole, or, what is still better, flake it from the bone, and take off the skin. Put it into a stewpan with the butter, parsley, shalot, pepper, and nutmeg. Melt the butter gradually, and be very careful that it does not become like oil. When all is well mixed and thoroughly hot, add the lemon-juice, and serve.

Time.-hour. Average cost, 2s. 6d. ; with remains of cold fish, 5d. Seasonable from November to March.

Sufficient for 4 persons.

Note.-Cod that has been left will do for this.

THE SEASON FOR FISHING COD.-The best season for catching cod is from the beginning of February to the end of April; and although each fisherman engaged in taking them, catches no more than one at a time, an expert hand will sometimes take four hundred in a day. The employment is excessively fatiguing, from the weight of the fish as well as from the coldness of the climate.

COD A L'ITALIENNE.

241. INGREDIENTS.-2 slices of crimped cod, 1 shalot, 1 slice of ham minced very fine, pint of white stock, No. 107; when liked, teacupful of cream; salt to taste; a few drops of garlic vinegar, a little lemon-juice, teaspoonful of powdered sugar.

Mode.-Chop the shalots, mince the ham very fine, pour on the stock, and simmer for 15 minutes. If the colour should not be good, add cream in the above proportion, and strain it through a fine sieve; season it, and put in the vinegar, lemon-juice, and sugar. Now boil the cod, take out the middle bone, and skin it; put it on the dish without breaking, and pour the sauce over it.

Time.-hour. Average cost, 3s. 6d., with fresh fish.
Seasonable from November to March.

Sufficient for 4 persons.

THE FECUNDITY OF THE COD.-In our preceding remarks on the natural history of fishes, we have spoken of the amazing fruitfulness of this fish; but in this we see one more instance of the wise provision which Nature has made for supplying the wants of man. So extensive has been the consumption of this fish, that it is surprising that it has not long ago become extinct; which would certainly have been the case, had it not been for its wonderful powers of reproduction. "So early as 1368," says Dr. Cloquet, "the inhabitants of Amsterdam had dispatched fishermen to the coast of Sweden; and in the first quarter of 1792, from the ports of France only, 210 vessels went out to the cod-fisheries. Every year, however, upwards of 10,000 vessels, of all nations, are employed in this trade, and bring into the commercial world more than 40,000,000 of salted and dried cod. If we add to this immense number, the havoc made among the legions of cod by the larger scaly tribes of the great deep, and take into account the destruction to which the young are exposed by sea-fowls and other inhabitants of the seas, besides the myriads of their eggs destroyed by accident, it becomes a miracle to find that such mighty multitudes of them are still in existence, and ready to continue the exhaustless supply. Yet it ceases to excite our wonder when we remember that the female can every year give birth to more than 9,000,000 at a time."

BAKED CARP.

242. INGREDIENTS.-1 carp, force meat, bread crumbs, 1 oz. butter, pint of stock No. 105, pint of port wine, 6 anchovies, 2 onions sliced, 1 bay-leaf, a faggot of sweet herbs, flour to thicken, the juice of 1 lemon; cayenne and salt to taste; teaspoonful of powdered sugar.

Mode.-Stuff the carp with a delicate forcemeat, after thoroughly cleansing it, and sew it up, to prevent the stuffing from falling out. Rub it over with an egg, and sprinkle it with bread crumbs, lay it in a deep earthen dish, and drop the butter, oiled, over the bread crumbs. Add the stock, onions, bay-leaf, herbs, wine, and anchovies, and bake for 1 hour. Put 1 oz. of butter into a stewpan, melt it, and dredge in sufficient flour to dry it up; put in the strained liquor from the carp, stir frequently, and when it has boiled, add the lemon-juice and seasoning. Serve the carp on a dish garnished with parsley and cut lemon, and the sauce in a boat.

Time.-1 hour. Average cost. Seldom bought.
Seasonable from March to October.
Sufficient for 1 or 2 persons.

THE CARP.-This species of fish inhabit the fresh waters, where they feed on worms, insects, aquatic plants, small fish, clay, or mould. Some of them are migratory. They have very small mouths and no teeth, and the gill membrane has three rays. The body is smooth, and generally whitish. The carp both grows and increases very fast, and is accounted the most valuable of all fish for the stocking of ponds. It has been pronounced the queen of river-fish, and was first introduced to this country about three hundred

THE CARP.

years ago. Of its sound, or air-bladder, a kind of glue is made, and a green paint of its gall.

STEWED CARP.

243. INGREDIENTS.-1 carp, salt, stock No. 105, 2 onions, 6 cloves, 12 peppercorns, 1 blade of mace, pint of port wine, the juice of lemon, cayenne and salt to taste, a faggot of savoury herbs.

Mode.-Scale the fish, clean it nicely, and, if very large, divide it; lay it in the stewpan, after having rubbed a little salt on it, and put in sufficient stock to cover it; add the herbs, onions, and spices, and stew gently for 1 hour, or rather more, should it be very large. Dish up the fish with great care, strain the liquor, and add to it the port wine, lemon-juice, and cayenne; give one boil, pour it over the fish, and serve.

Time.-1 hour. Average cost. Seldom bought.

Seasonable from March to October.

Sufficient for 1 or 2 persons.

Note. This fish can be boiled plain, and served with parsley and butter. Chub and Char may be cooked in the same manner as the above, as also Dace and Roach.

THE AGE OF CARP.-This fish has been found to live 150 years. The pond in the garden of Emmanuel College, Cambridge, contained one that had lived there 70 years, and Gesner mentions an instance of one 100 years old. They are, besides, capable of being tamed. Dr. Smith, in his "Tour on the Continent," says, in reference to the prince of Condé's seat at Chantilly, "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."

THE CHUB.-This fish takes its name from its head, not only in England, but in other countries. It is a river-fish, and resembles the carp, but is somewhat longer. Its flesh is not in much esteem, being coarse, and, when out of season, full of small hairy bones The head and throat are the best parts. The roe is also good.

THE CHAR.-This is one of the most delicious of fish, being esteemed by some superior to the salmon. It is an inhabitant of the deep lakes of mountainous countries. Its flesh is rich and red, and full of fat. The largest and best kind is found in the lakes of Westmoreland, and, as it is considered a rarity, it is often potted and preserved.

THE DACE, OR DARE.-This fish is gregarious, and is seldom above ten inches long; although, according to Linnæus, it grows a foot and a half in length. Its haunts are in deep water, near piles of bridges, where the stream is gentle, over gravelly, sandy, or clayey bottoms; deep holes that are shaded, water-lily leaves, and under the foam caused by an eddy. In the warm months they are to be found in shoals on the shallows near to streams. They are in season about the end of April, and gradually improve till

February, when they attain their highest condition. In that month, when just taken, scotched (crimped), and broiled, they are said to be more palatable than a fresh herring.

THE ROACH.-This fish is found throughout Europe, and the western parts of Asia, in deep still rivers, of which it is an inhabitant. It is rarely more than a pound and a half in weight, and is in season from September till March. It is plentiful in England, and the finest are caught in the Thames. The proverb, "as sound as a roach," is derived from the French name of this fish being roche, which also means rock.

TO DRESS CRAB.

244. INGREDIENTS.- -1 crab, 2 tablespoonfuls of vinegar, 1 ditto of oil; salt, white pepper, and cayenne, to taste.

Mode.-Empty the shells, and thoroughly mix the meat with the above ingredients, and put it in the large shell. Garnish with slices of cut lemon and parsley. The quantity of oil may be increased when it is much liked. (See Coloured Plate I.)

Average cost, from 10d. to 2s.

Seasonable all the year; but not so good in May, June, and July.

Sufficient for 3 persons.

TO CHOOSE CRAB.-The middle-sized crab is the best; and the crab, like the lobster, should be judged by its weight; for if light, it is watery.

HOT CRAB.

245. INGREDIENTS.-1 crab, nutmeg, salt and pepper to taste, 3 oz. of butter, lb. of bread crumbs, 3 tablespoonfuls of vinegar.

Mode.-After having boiled the crab, pick the meat out from the shells, and mix with it the nutmeg and seasoning. Cut up the butter in small pieces, and add the bread crumbs and vinegar. Mix altogether, put the whole in the large shell, and brown before the fire or with a salamander.

Time.-1 hour. Average cost, from 10d. to 2s.

Seasonable all the year; but not so good in May, June, and July. Sufficient for 3 persons.

THE CRAB TRIBE.-The whole of this tribe of animals have the body covered with a hard and strong shell, and they live chiefly in the sea. Some, however, inhabit fresh