42 BULLETIN OF THE 



In partial contraction the contracted polyps, with their tentacles, often form 

 large verruca;. 



Small zooids are scattered over the surface between the polyps ; sometimes 

 these are prominent, in the form of small verrucae ; at other times they are so 

 contracted as to be inconspicuous. The color is red, varying from bright 

 cherry-red to dark red. 



A well-grown specimen, but not the largest examined, measured across the 

 polypiferous summit, 82 mm. ; diameter of peduncle, 50 mm. ; height of 

 peduncle, 30 mm. ; of polypiferous mass, 30 mm. ; length of polyps as ex- 

 panded in alcohol, 36 mm. ; diameter of body, 7 to 9 mm. ; breadth across 

 expanded tentacles, 25 to 30 mm. (aliout 1 to 1^ inches). The tentacles and 

 their pinnae are tilled with slender fusiform or needle-shaped acute spindles. 



The red spicula of the external part of the coenenchyma are abundant, of 

 various forms, but mostly rather small, and very roughly v/arted. The largest 

 are irregular, oblong and fusiform, roughly and unevenly spinulated spicula 

 (Fig. 10 a, c), sometimes swollen in the middle, sometimes near one end ; the 

 warts or sjnnules are usually large and prominent, but scattered and unequal; 

 on some of the longest and most regular fusiform spicula they are smaller 

 and more regular. The former measure .20 by .06, .20 by .03, .19 by .04, .18 

 by .05, .17 by .06, .15 by .05 mm. ; the latter, .33 by .05, .32 by .03, .30 by 

 .03 mm. With these (Fig. 10 a, d) there are large numbers of much smaller, 

 short, very rough spicula (double-heads) with a narrow naked space in the 

 middle and a whorl of long, sharp, rough warts near each' end; some of these 

 have each end terminated by a cluster of rough spinules ; others are a little 

 longer, with the ends acute, or with two or three spinules. The double-heads 

 measure .09 by .07, .08 by .06, .08 by .05, .07 by .06, .07 by .05 mm. Among 

 these there are also some small, rough, four- parted or cross-shaped spicula, of 

 similar size. 



The spicula of the interior of the ccenenchyma are similar, but larger and 

 more strongly warted spindles (Fig. 10 b, g) and double-heads (Fig. 10 b,/). 

 With these there are, however, numerous rough and coarsely marked club- 

 shaped spicula (Fig. 10 b, c), some of them elongated, others much shorter ; 

 they have whorls of rough prominent warts at the larger end, becoming 

 smaller toward the smaller end, which is acute. The larger fusiform spic- 

 ula measure .36 by .08, .35 by .06, .28 by .09, .26 by .08, .23 by .08, .18 by 

 .07 mm. ; the clubs measure .19 by .08, .18 by .08, .16 by .06, .15 by .08, .13 

 by .07, .11 by .06 mm. ; the double-heads, .13 by .08, .12 by .07, .08 by .05 mm. 



The Gloucester fishermen first collected this species on the deep-water fish- 

 ing banks, off Nova Scotia, in 1877 and 1878. Since that time they have 

 brought in numerous specimens and presented them to the U. S. Fish 

 Commission. These have come from off George's Bank, Le Have Bank, Ban- 

 ([uereau, Sable Island Bank, Grand Bank, etc., in 150 to 300 fathoms. Nu- 

 merous specimens were dredged by the U. S. Fish Comm. steamer Fish Hawk, 

 off Martha's Vineyard, in 410 to 458 fathoms, 1881. It was also dredged 

 in the Caribbean Sea by Mr. A. Agassiz, on the Blake, in 1878-79. 



