SWORDFISHES OR SPEARFISHES. 169 



CHAPTER IX. 



Swordfishes or Spearfishes The Luvarus Fish Dolphin-Fishes 

 TheT Pomfrets The John Dory Family The Flat- Fishes The Goby 

 Family. 



SWORDFISHES OR SPEARFISHES. 



( Family : Histioph oridce . ) 



THE Swordfishes, or, more properly, the Spearfishes, are 

 large oceanic fishes, occurring in all tropical and temperate 

 seas. They are endowed with extraordinary strength and 

 velocity, and most of the species are but rarely captured. 

 Next to those powerful and masterful cetaceans, the Killers 

 (Orca gladiator} , I think they may be regarded as the Lords 

 of the Ocean; and they are the largest among all Teleos- 

 teans; attaining to lengths of from 12 to 15 feet. The 

 "swords" or "spears" differ in length in the various species ; 

 in the typical Histiophorus gladiiis reaching a length of at 

 least 4 feet. 



The Spearfishes are much respected by fisher- folk, 

 because of the formidable weapon that they carry about, 

 always ready for immediate action. Not only are they 

 always ready, but apparently they are always looking, for 

 a fight ; their pugnacity being well-known and having passed 

 into a by-word. Many are the tales of ships being attacked 

 by these mischievous "demons-of-the-deep," a large number 

 of them being undoubtedly founded on fact. In some 

 cases timbers of more than a foot in thickness have been 

 pierced, in the majority of instances the spear or sword 

 having been broken off into the hole formed by it. 



One does not need to go abroad for these occurrences, 

 as, within the last few years, there have been several cases 

 chronicled as having happened within our own waters. At 

 first sight it appears, perhaps, marvellous, that these fishes 

 are able to penetrate the sides of ships; but when the size, 



