As an article of food, pollacks are usually considered inferior to whiting, but, in some places, they are much esteemed. On the Continent they are sometimes salted, and eaten during Lent by the inferior classes of people. 213. _LING_ (Gadus molva) _are a species of cod which have two dorsal fins, a small beard on the under jaw, the under jaw longer than the upper, and the tail fin rounded._ _They are caught in great numbers in the Northern Ocean, and about the northern coasts of Great Britain and Ireland; and when full grown are three or four feet in length._ The importance of these fish in a commercial view, is very great. Their size, the numbers in which they are caught, the excellence of their flesh when salted, and the value of the oil that they yield, all contribute to render them an object of eager pursuit by fishermen in those countries on the coasts of which they are found. More than 900,000 pounds' weight of ling are annually exported from the coasts of Norway. In England they are fished for and cured in the same manner as cod (205): and it is said that they bear carriage to great distances much better than cod. Ling are in season from February until about the end of May. Vast numbers of these fish are salted in the northern parts of England, for exportation as well as for home consumption. When they are in season the _liver_ is white, and yields a great quantity of fine and well-flavoured oil. This is extracted by placing it over a slow fire; but if a sudden heat be applied, very little oil can be obtained. As soon as the fish are out of season the liver becomes red, and affords no oil. A kind of isinglass is made from the _air-bladders_. The _tongues_ are eaten either fresh, dried, or salted. 214. _The BURBOT_ (Gadus lota, Fig. 60) _is a somewhat eel-shaped species of cod with two dorsal fins, a single fleshy beard on the under jaw, the jaws nearly equal in length, and the tail rounded._ _This fish is found in some rivers of England, and in rivers and lakes of the Continent; and when full grown weighs two or three pounds._