[31] HISTORY OF THE TILE-FISH. 2fi7 



But it was in the period from March 20 to 25 that the dead fish seem 

 to have covered the hirgest area, and during this time the reports of 

 their having been seen were more frequent than before or afterwards. 



The ship British America is reported to have seen the dead fish on 

 March 20, 45 miles south of Shinnecock, Long Island, which would place 

 her in latitude 40° 05' N., longitude 72° 24' W. No mention is made 

 of this ship having sailed through the dead fish for any distance, or, 

 indeed, is anj information given other than that the fish were seen in 

 the locality named. The correctness of this even is open to a doubt, 

 for it seems extremely probable that the dead fish were not so far north, 

 since the position given is some 25 to 30 miles, at least, inside of where 

 the Tile-fish might have been expected to occur. It is possible, how- 

 ever, that some unknown circumstance may have caused them to 

 venture into waters of less depth than they had previously been found 

 in, or they may have been carried by the wind and waves a long dis- 

 tance from the place where they first came to the surface. 



On the same day (March 20) the steamship Bella reported seeing 

 dead fish GO miles south of Barnegat, which would be in latitude 38° 46' 

 2^., longitude 73° 56' W. The same may be said of the Bella as of the 

 ship British America. The position given is far inside of where the fish 

 were seen by other vessels, and in shallow water. Nothing is said of her 

 passing through the dead fish for any distance, though she probably did, 

 and in the absence of other data we can only submit such as are avail- 

 able. 



March 21 the bark Elizabeth Ostle sailed through the dead fish from 

 latitude 38° 37' N., longitude 72° 58' W., to latitude 39© 15' K, and 

 longitude 73° 15' W. 



On the same day the schooner Navarino, boundnorth, struck the dead 

 fish in latitude 38° 41' N., longitude 73° 01' W., near 'the same point 

 where they were first seen by the crew of the Elizabeth Ostle.* Kunning 

 on a northeasterly course along the edge of soundings inside of the Gulf 

 Stream, the Navarino plowed her way through the dead fish from the 21st 

 until night of the 22d, a distance of 150 miUs^ to latitude 40^ 17' If. and 

 longitude 70° 30' W., crossing the tracks of the Elizabeth Ostle, Alf, Avon- 

 more, and Plymouth, and for 40 or 50 miles toward the northern end of her 

 trad-, sailing nearly parallel icith the course which the Sidon made through 

 the Lopholatilus eight days before. 



On March 22 the bark Alf sailed through the dead fish from latitude 

 38° 37' N., longitude 72° 54' W. to latitude 39° 32' K, and longi- 

 tude 72° 20' W., a distance of 60 miles. The account of the course sailed 

 by the Alf is so indefinite that we can only guess at it. Captain Lar- 

 sen says : " When just inside the Gulf stream, about 70 miles south- 



* These vessels were sailing nearly at right angles to each other, and though the 

 data are indefinite and unsatisfactory, they are, nevertheless, sufficient to arrive 

 pretty closely at the positions where the dead fish were first observed and where they 

 were last seen. 



