176 Mr. A. S. Woodward on a 



Descrijjtion. 

 . As shown by PL VII. fig. 1, the fish is of a graceful fusi- 

 form shape, the greatest depth, slightly in advance of the 

 dorsal fin, being contained about three and a half times in the 

 total length. The head and opercular bones occupy not quite 

 a third of the total length ; and, as usual in the genus, the 

 dorsal and anal fins are remote. 



The head-bones, as just stated, are so much crushed that 

 the complete outline of very few can be distinguished. The 

 exposed surfaces seem to have been smooth, or only partially 

 ornamented with scattered tubercles ; but it is impossible to 

 determine to which parts the ornament was confined. Of the 

 inner bones, there are the remains of a pair, evidently vome- 

 rine or palatine, bearing series of stout conical teeth ; and of 

 the more external elements, the characters of the premaxilla 

 and maxilla can be observed. 



The premaxilla (fig. 2) constitutes but a small portion of 

 the upper border of the mouth, and bears at least five strong 

 conical teeth ; it is produced above into a broad backwardly- 

 directed process, the length of which is about twice as great 

 as that of the dentigerous margin of the bone. The entire 

 form of the element is remarkably similar to that of Lepido- 

 ius. The maxilla (fig. 3) has also a close resemblance to the 

 corresponding bone in the last-named genus ; it is very 

 narrow in its anterior half, but becomes rapidly deeper behind, 

 and the posterior portion attains a depth equalling about a 

 third of the entire length of the dentigerous border ; there is 

 also articulated with the upper edge of this expansion a 

 small distinct element, which may be interpreted either as 

 jugal or as merely a dismemberment of the maxilla itself. 

 The teeth are sharply conical and somewhat irregularly dis- 

 posed, the larger ones being relatively far apart, and the 

 smaller ones being closely set in the interspaces. 



The posterior hrancMostegal rays (fig. 4) are very broad 

 distally, gradually tapering to the attached end ; and between 

 the rami of the mandible there is a large median gular plate. 

 An impression of the inner aspect of the latter (fig. 5) is well 

 shown in one of the specimens ; its anterior half is almost 

 horseshoe-shaped, and appears to be divided from the posterior 

 broader portion by slight lateral notches. 



Displaced and situated above the crushed head in the less 

 perfect specimen, is a well-preserved scale-bone, which ap- 

 pears to be one of the series originally attached to the poste- 

 rior margin of the pectoral arch. This (fig. 6) is vertically 

 elongated, its length being equal to twice and a half its 

 greatest breadth. It is of the form of a parallelogram, with 



