10
time. A closer investigation of the "climate " of this part
of the Norwegian coast should certainly lead to the con-
clusion, that a better hatching-place for the eggs and for
the development of the fry of the Gadus family scarcely
could be found on any coast.
On an average 23 millions of codfish are caught here at
Lofoten every winter. The balance of the schools, and also
some millions out of the 23 millions left to spawn, is so
enormous, that it would be very hard to express by figures
how many eggs are deposited. If only 10 millions of
female codfish would have the chance to deposit their eggs,
each fish would yield at least 1 million of eggs; and if
only 1 per cent, of these were hatched out safely every
coming spring, there should be codlings enough to form
a new stock for an average take of 25 millions of cod for
some thousands of years. The reproduction of the cod is
extraordinarily great. While a female salmon has 800 to
1000 eggs for each pound of its weight, a cod has more
than 100,000 eggs for each pound; and I do not know of
any other fish which has so many eggs in proportion to its
weight, perhaps with the exception of the Norwegian winter
herring, in which I have counted 70,000 per half-pound, or
140,000 eggs a pound.
It has never been proved that the schools of codfish at
Lofoten have decreased in the last thousand years, and it
would be very hard to prove this, facts leading to a some-
what contrary conclusion. That the schools probably have
increased too much, in spite of large takes, may rather be
the case, as the codfish sometimes are so meagre and thin,
that only want of food in proportion to the enormous schools
can account for it. On an average 400 Lofoten codfish
will give one barrel of liver, and two barrels of liver will
give one barrel of medicinal cod-liver oil. But in seasons