1. In the lower left corner of a large sheet of heavy- 

 white paper, Bristol board, or railroad board, enclose the 

 dimensions of the type page (the left side and bottom of the 

 rectangle will be formed by the two outer edges of the sheet). 

 This rectangle contains the maximum space available for 

 a page- size figure and its legend, so you shorten the 

 rectangle sufficiently to allow for a 2- or 3-line legend, 

 usually not more than a half inch. 



2. From the lower left corner draw a diagonal (long 

 dashes in fig. 1) to the upper right corner of the rectangle 

 and extend as far as you wish. 



3. Double or triple the width of the rectangle (depend- 

 ing on whether you want the original drawing to be two or 

 three times the size of the printed illustration), and erect 

 a vertical (short dashes) that intersects the diagonal. 



4. Complete the outline of the illustration by drawing 

 a horizontal that passes through the intersection of the 

 diagonal and vertical. 



But the material you are presenting in a graph may 

 not warrant page size. In technical publications such as 

 the Fishery Bulletin, the Special Scientific Reports, or 

 Research Report, always plan your figures for column 

 width when the data permit. For column-width figures, 

 follow the steps outlined for determining size and propor- 

 tions of a drawing of page size, but limit the original to 

 a size not greater than about three times the width of a 

 column. Your drawing, then, would not be wider than about 

 9\ inches nor deeper than 24 inches. 



Various devices will assist you in presenting complicated 

 material in column-width figures. Try presenting your data 

 in two or more figures, each limited to two or three 

 variables. Use a series of graphs in one figure, designating 

 the parts A, B, C, or I, II, III, as needed- -each graph 

 with its individual 0-line and limited to one or two vari- 

 ables- -arranged vertically in the column. 



If a long abscissa scale is required, you should plan 

 a figure two columns wide. Only in extreme instances 

 should an illustration go "broad," requiring the reader to 

 turn the publication sideways to study the figure. (Note.-- 

 The dependent variable is plotted on the ordinate (X or 

 vertical axis), and the independent variable on the abscissa 

 (y or horizontal axis.) 



