240 Froceedings of the Royal Physical Society. - 



length may be estimated at -J incli more. The form of the 

 body is rather slender, gradually tapering from the shoulder 

 to the tail pedicle ; the greatest depth of the body is contained 

 about five times, and the length of the head a little less than 

 four times in the length of body up to the bifurcation of the 

 caudal fin. The head appears large for the slender form of 

 the fish. The orbit is, as usual, very anteriorly placed, the 

 suspensorium very oblique, the gape enormous, the jaws 

 powerful and armed with formidable teeth in two sets. Of 

 these, the laniaries or teeth of the inner series are slender, 

 conical, and incurved, -^ to gV inch in length in a mandible 

 of f inch, set at intervals of considerably less than their own 

 length, while external to them is a series of closely placed 

 teeth of very small size. The opercular bones are not well 

 preserved, but appear to be of moderate size ; eight branchio- 

 stegal rays may be counted in one specimen, but they are 

 clearly not all shown. All the external bones of the head, 

 as well as of the shoulder girdle, are sculptured with fine 

 sharp flexuous ridges. The pectoral fins are of considerable 

 expanse, and nearly equal in length the interval between 

 them and the ventrals. Each consists approximately of 

 about twenty-five rays, of which the stronger ones on the 

 pre-axial aspect of the fin are unarticulated for more than 

 I of their length. The ventral is seen in one specimen, 

 and appears small and delicate, though its extremity is not 

 preserved; its rays are slender, with distant articulations. 

 The dorsal fin rises far back, .being placed nearly opposite 

 the anal, and commencing only a little in front of the 

 latter ; it is acuminate in shape, and rather deeply cut out 

 behind ; the anal is not so well preserved, but appears similar 

 in form to the dorsal. It is hardly possible to ascertain the 

 number of rays in either, but in both they are slender, 

 bifuracted towards their terminations, and divided by rather 

 distant articulations. The caudal is large and deeply bifur- 

 cated, but in no case well preserved ; its rays are likewise 

 slender and distantly jointed, the articulations, however, be- 

 coming closer in the shorter rays of the upper lobe; the 

 caudal body-prolongation is slender. The scales are of moder- 

 ate size ; their anterior-covered area is very narrow, the keel 



