874. REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. [86} 
have been several voyages masters of whaling-ships, and are perfectly 
familiar with Sword-fish on our coast, and both speak of seeing plenty 
of Bill-fish in the Pacific Ocean, but never took the trouble to catch 
them. 
The Sword-fish appears on the coast of Massachusetts from the 8th 
to the 20th of June, and is first seen southwest from Block Island. They 
begin to leave in August, but stray ones are sometimes seen as late as. 
the last of October. The general opinion of their coming and going is 
that they follow their food, which swarms on our coast (between the 
seasons named) in the form of mackerel and menhaden; these fish are 
of course driven off by the approach of winter and rough weather. A 
number of boats, large and small, have been struck by Sword-fish on 
our coast but always after the fish has been struck. The people of 
Block Island sometimes catch them with hook and line, bait with fresh 
mackerel and throw just ahead of the fish, when he will stick it with his: 
sword and then swallow it, after which he is easily managed. 
Yours, truly, 
WILLARD NYE, Jn. 
‘Vie 
* 
FROM CAPT. WILLIAM E. SPICER, NOANK, CONN. 
NoANK, CONN., January 11, 1875. 
DEAR Srr: I made inquiry at Mystic concerning the question you 
wanted information on. I found that the crews of the two smacks were: 
all dead but one man, Mr. William Taylor, a man 76 years old, and he 
lived five miles back of Mystic. I went and saw the man. He says he 
was in the smack, her name was the Evergreen, Capt. John Appleman; 
they started from “ Mystic” in company with the smack “ Morning Star”, 
Captain Rowiand, for Key West, on a fishing voyage; they left October. 
3, 1832, and he thinks that on the 12th, off Cape Hatteras, blowing heavy 
wind northeast, under double-reefed sails, at 10 o’clock at night, she 
was struck by a Woho, which shocked the smack allover. They made 
a signal to the other smack to keep close by them, for she was leaking. 
badly. The next morning they found the leak; the same kept off for 
Charlest®h, both smacks. Took out her ballast, hove her out and 
found his sword had gone through the plank, timber, and ceiling. 
The plank was 2 inches thick, timber 5, the ceiling 14-inch white oak,. 
and the end of his sword 2 inches through on the inside of the ceil- 
ing in the after-run. It struck close by a butt on the outside, which 
split the plank and caused the leak. They took out a piece of the 
plank and proceeded on their voyage. 
Yours, truly, 
WM. BE. SPICER. 
