Perhaps if the salesmen had evoked these qualities instead of promoting the dubious benefits of having too much unimportant knowledge at your fingertips (Madam, have you ever wanted to know about the mating rituals of the common eel but didn't know where to ask?) then the Britannica could still be finding space on our book shelves.

Stewarton's Jim Richardson scooped pounds 60 for a common eel of 0.46kgs.

The dorsal fin of a conger begins quite near to the head and its lower jaw protrudes; these two features help distinguish small conger eels from common eels.